Ultradimension Neptunia Crimson Odyssey
by Red-Drive
Summary: A few years after the events of Ultradimension Neptunia V, Arfoire suddenly returns to Gamindustri! Unable to defeat her with their original method, the group is forced to use the cursed sword of the Conquest ending with horrific results. Reincarnated a century later, Neptune must regain her goddess powers, and her friends; all while dealing with her memories of the past.
1. Overture, Act I: The Great Ascension

Author's Notes & Disclaimer: 

The setting is after Ultradimension Neptunia V (Current English translation of the latest game's title in the Neptunia franchise), but takes elements from both Mk2's true ending and the conquest ending. (Ultradimension Neptunia V takes place years after the events of Mk2's true ending) Of course, the usual disclaimer: I do not own anything. Okay, I'm done talking now. Without further adieu, I give to you _Ultradimension Neptunia Crimson Odyssey_! I hope you enjoy the story.

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**Overture, Act I: The Great Ascension **

[_Main Gameindustri Goddess Era Year 20XX_]

Once long ago, there once was a single goddess alone who ruled Gameindustri. She, Nepgear of Planeptune stood high and mighty above the rest. Today, unknown to anyone but I would be her final day. _CLASH!_ _BOOM!_ Nothing is as it should be. Somehow, we fell into an undesired future, a future acquired through the blood of many. Once the most innocent of them all, she stands a murderer, a sinner. How it all happened, even I am not sure. For in all of my infinite wisdom I had never imagined the Deity of Sin would manage to deceive us so tragically. How I wish I had ordered them to destroy that cursed blade the moment I laid eyes on it! It is too late. All I can do now is watch…until the very end.

The goddess in question writhed in pain as another blast of dark energy slammed against her body. She was helpless, but she attempted to fight off the pain. "I can't lose." She murmured. Tears rolled down her cheek, a savage impulse coursing through her body. Slowly, she rose to her feet. Her opponent only chuckled as the goddess recomposed herself. "Too many people have died for what we have now!" Nepgear screamed. She violently brandished gehaburn, the cursed sword at the heart of this tragedy. As she did so blades of magical energy flew towards her enemy, Arfoire the Deity of Sin. They made impact, but the damage was completely minimal.

Arfoire only grinned as thorn covered vines erupted from the ground and ensnared Nepgear, leaving her immobilized, and unable to move her sword. As the thorns began to pierce Nepgear's flesh, she wailed. She lurched for a moment, but regardless struggled in an attempt to free herself. Unfortunately, it only made her wounds worse. She cringed. 'This isn't good. I'm losing too much blood. NO! I can't lose! I WON'T!' Her body revived with even more vigor than before as she struggled against her bondages. It only proved to worsen her wounds once again. Finally, after moments of struggle she had managed to free gehaburn. What really confused the young goddess though was that Arfoire was laughing at her.

"Foolish girl," Arfoire began mockingly, "Your shares are nearly all mine. You have nothing! You killed your friends, your family. You stand here before me a sinner, no better than I." The deity said mockingly.

Nepgear continued her struggle, attempting to readjust her blade's angle in hopes of cutting herself free. Unfortunately, it only served to slit her wrists in multiple areas. She yelped but continued to struggle, growling in frustration. "That's not true!" Nepgear retorted. "I will defeat y-"

"It is over child!" Arfoire exclaimed. "Look at you struggling. Your desire to kill me is strong. You have become no better than a savage beast, only seeking your next prey." Arfoire spat.

Nepgear shook her head. For the first time in many long years, uncertainty and fear suddenly replaced her hardened, cold demeanor. Something else came with it though- rage. "What do you know? You don't know me!" Nepgear's eyes nearly fell out of their sockets when the gehaburn freed itself from her hand, and floated over into Arfoire's. "Wh-Why-"

"Why?" Arfoire repeated. "It's because this sword doesn't belong to you." Arfoire smiled at Nepgear's puzzled expression. "Surely you didn't think because you were 'forced' to kill your closest allies that this sword was your property. Perhaps, you felt entitled to it. Understandable, but incredibly naïve; you couldn't have been any more wrong."

Nepgear's eyes widened and her face paled as the mysterious man who told them the location of the cursed blade made his way into view. Arfoire stepped out of his way, and without a word, handed him the blade. He smiled wickedly at her. "It isn't wise to look for shortcuts. There's always a price."

Nepgear could take no more. She no longer had the strength to fight. All she could do was utter the only question that came to mind. "Just, who are you?" She asked.

The man grinned as his features began to change. Nepgear blanched in horror as the man slowly grew taller, horns erupted from his skull and he took the overall image of a demon appeared before her. She tried to think of a foe they had previously thought, but none came to mind. The only thing that registered was the sound of her screaming at the sight before her. Suddenly, an image appeared over the demon. It left her completely confused. "I-Impossible, what are you-"

"A little messenger from the Netherworld," It interjected. "Unlike Arfoire whom I had to piece back together after you almost destroyed her completely, I reside within the small amounts of evil that remained in this world. It is truly thanks to you however, that any of this was possible." It explained.

Nepgear cocked an eyebrow. "I don't understand-"

"It was your greed." It answered. "It was you who sought the legendary sword after you heard of its awesome powers. It was all because of your lust for power!" It roared.

Nepgear shook her head. "No, no that can't be true!" She yelled through her sobs. "I did what I needed to do to protect Gamindustri!" She cried. Nepgear flinched as the demon leveled gehaburn at her throat. The girl bravely stared it down. "I won't let you beat me this easily."

The demon laughed at her cruelly. "How sad, the great and powerful Nepgear reduced to a powerless, little girl. It's almost too pathetic to watch." The thunder roared, and a bolt of lightning caused the world to flash blinding white. She continued to look forward. Finally, she closed her eyes to prepare herself for the inevitable. 'Sis, Uni, everyone… I'm sorry. I'll see you all soon.' She thought to herself quietly. The image of her friends, her beloved companions was blissful release from this painful struggle.

The last sounds Nepgear would ever hear is the deafening roar of the thunder, her muffled screams, and the gehaburn piercing her flesh. _SPLAT!_ At last the goddess once so revered fell backwards into a pool of her own blood, her body limp and pale.

The demon laughed, thinking it had won when a second light overtook them. Arfoire cursed. "It's Histoire!" She yelled. "We should have taken care of her beforehand!" She complained.

The demon only shook her head. "Nonsense, she can only do so much. Even if she were to revive the goddesses it would be meaningless!" She exclaimed. "For so long as I hold this blade, I am invincible!" She boasted.

"Right, and that's exactly why I am taking that from you!" IF said quickly as she swiped the blade from the demon's clutches and disappeared within a blue magic circle.

The demon's eyes widened in shock as she noted the sword's theft and roared in anger. "Curses! Damn you Histoire! But know THIS! No matter where you run, Gameindustri- no the world is OURS!" The demon laughed maniacally as the world around them seemed to disappear and fade away, as if nothing but a horrible nightmare.

"…Not if I have anything to save about it." Histoire's muttered to herself. Suddenly, Gameindustri began to break apart! The three nations of the continent divided, and soon they along with Leanbox ascended towards the heavens. The four lands, along with multiple different islands were officially skyward. And soon enough, a spiral galaxy-like portal appeared. Eventually, the floating continents disappeared through the portal and existed no longer within this land ravished by evil and destruction. What the fate was of the world left behind? To this day, only Histoire's great tome itself knows that answer.

From the confines of an unknown room within Celestia, Histoire began to recite a chant. "Their time taken premature may the fallen be revived. This world, tarnished by needless bloodshed, may it be reborn anew within a new sky!" Four lights: purple, blue, silver, and green surrounded her in a diamond formation. Her eyes narrowed at the gehaburn before she raised it over head. "And may this sword be purified by the heavens! Let it rest here as the key to this holy pact. May it be that it never slay innocent blood again!" As she ended the chant, a pedestal rose from the ground beneath her. Without another thought she impaled the pedestal with the sword, causing waves of white light to fly out of the pedestal. The blade began to change. Once black and maroon, the blade now stood white and gold.

It was silent for several moments. Finally, the only other being present spoke. "Quite a dramatic performance you had going on there. I knew you wouldn't let their sacrifices be in vain though." IF said to her.

Histoire smiled sadly. "Yes, but I regret ever allowing it to happen. I am glad that you had faith in me until the end… IF. You always were my most loyal agent."

IF smiled. "Damn straight. I just wish I had more time." Histoire noted the bleeding in IF's side. She had to fight her way through quite a number of monsters to get to where Nepgear's killer in the Graveyard. "I won't last much longer Histoire… I'll tell Compa and the rest of the gang that you give us your blessings. That alright?" She said quietly.

Histoire nodded. "Yes. Please do. You've done a wonderful job guild agent IF. You are honorably relieved of your duties for restful leave."

IF smiled. "Thanks… And goodbye." Histoire watched as IF finally went limp, shutting her eyes as she entered her eternal slumber. Histoire only shook her head when she noted IF's smile still bright and evident on her face.

Histoire turned back to gehaburn, eyeing the wretched blade with a hateful glare. "I don't even know what I was thinking programming something like you into the world." She admitted to it. "Hopefully, in this next world things will be better, for everyone." Remembering the sight of Nepgear's broken body, tears filled her eyes. "I want to start over again." With that, she used her magic to lift IF's body and took it with her out of the chamber, sealing the door tightly behind her. She had a lot to do, but at the very least, she had to give her most loyal agent and trusted companion a proper burial. After that, she'd have to have a long conversation with the oracles about what would happen to the current Gamindustri.

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Author's Notes: 

I am really not sure about how this turned out. I attempted to write everyone in character as much as possible, but felt the need to alter Gear's character a tad (if it showed) since I figured the years of solitude and guilt over what she had done would probably have done a number on her personality. I also know that there are a lot of things that I have yet to explain. A lot of that (the oracles, how they survived, the non goddess characters and their situations, how it happened, Histy's godly powers from the first game making their way into the Mk2 universe), is being covered in the next two chapters. I figured it'd be too much of an info dump to have it all in the first part of the prologue. Regardless, I hope you all enjoy the story and stick around to see what happens next!

_**Next Time - Overture, Act II: The Divine Summit **_


	2. Overture, Act II: The Divine Summit

_**Overture, Act II: The Divine Summit**_

A few hours later, Histoire was sat on a round table in a room on Celestia. It was very rare of an occasion but the oracles sometimes had the privilege of visiting Celestia. During the ascension however, they had all journeyed here for an emergency meeting. The reasons? Quite obvious. On Histoire's left, was Mina whose face was not even the least bit cordial. Directly across from her sat Chika who did not look any less pleased. The only one who seemed to be even remotely professional in composure other than Histoire was Kei, who sat on her right. The air was tense, Histoire had to say something. "I understand this must be very baffling for all of you." She began. Kei rolled her eyes at her, but she continued. "Especially after what has happened in the recent years-"

"Baffling? That's putting it lightly. I didn't know you were a master of euphemisms Histoire!" Chika spat, cutting her off.

Kei nodded. "I must agree with Chika on this one." She chimed. "There's no single word to even describe the recent events. Histoire, all the lands are now without goddesses. You claimed in your e-mail that you had a business proposal for us, and I'm not one for beating around the bush." She said coldly. "I want to know what it is, or I'm leaving. I don't plan to invest more than I receive either." She added.

"What else could she take from us?" Chika asked with a sarcastic voice. "She's already taken our lands after _that girl_ assimilated all of the nations into one single nation under Planeptune's rule." Venom dripped from every word that left Chika's lips.

Histoire flinched. She expected them to be bitter, but not outright hostile, though they had every right to be. Her goddess had not just killed their goddesses, but people they loved and respected. Biting her lip, she dared to ask, "Is there anything you'd like to say on the topic Mina?"

Mina shook her head. "I always told the twins that if you don't have anything nice to say, than to not say anything at all." She explained. "And quite frankly, I have nothing nice to say to you at all." She said darkly.

Histoire sighed. "Very well then Mina. My deal with you three is this: I may know a way to bring the goddesses back." She offered.

The room went dead silent. No one dared say anything. Mina's eyes immediately met Histoire's with shock. Chika's expression completely locked into one torn between disbelief and hope. Kei for the first time in her professional career lost her composure completely with bewilderment. "That's absurd!" Kei yelled. "No one can bring back the dead! Not even you Histoire!" Kei growled and rose from her seat. "This is ridiculous! I'm leaving." She exclaimed.

"Wait Kei," Chika began, "Let's… hear what she has to say." She finished softly.

Kei understood Chika's motivation, but the thought of resurrecting the dead was utterly ridiculous. Even for with Planeptune's scientific prowess, they've never resurrected a human from the dead. Especially given the current circumstances, since the goddesses, didn't leave bodies to revive upon their demise. Regardless, giving Chika hope with a claim this ludicrous didn't amuse Kei in the slightest. Still, the idea of being able to see Noire and Uni again was an overwhelming prospect. She had to admit; even she wanted to defy logic, just this once. "Fine," Kei finally said, "I will stay, but this theory better be sound Histoire. I'm not one to enjoy wasting my time." She warned.

Histoire looked over to Lowee's oracle. Today especially, she was almost as quiet as the goddess she once served. "Do I hear any objections from you, Mina?" She asked calmly.

Mina shook her head. "I'm listening, go on." She replied.

Histoire leaned back in her chair as four lights surrounded her. The oracles could easily identify them as the Purple, Black, White, and Green discs. Histoire looked their way. "These four discs give half the protection a goddess gives when fully active. These discs are also how your lands sustained very little damage when I pulled them up from our world, and into this dimension away from the Graveyard and that monstrosity." She explained.

Each of the four lights found their way to a respective owner. Purple went to Histoire, Black to Kei, White to Mina, and Green to Chika. Chika nodded. "Yes, we know the basics of the backup defense discs." Chika replied. "You gave them to us the day the oracle system was set in place, remember?" She asked.

"What I didn't tell you though Chika is that these are also made to store small amounts of Sharicite, as well as fragments of power from the original goddesses of Planeptune, Lastation, Lowee, and Leanbox respectively." Histoire added.

Kei seemed intrigued by this new piece of information, but it didn't quite fit together yet. "That's all very interesting Histoire, but what does that have to do with reviving the goddesses and the candidates?" She asked curiously.

Histoire shook her head. "I guess I shouldn't have worded my offer the way I did. What this will do is free their souls from the gehaburn. I cannot bring them physically back to life, but I can put their souls back into the flow of reincarnation. Unfortunately, that means there's a chance that all eight of them will be rendered human. We will have no control over whether they will be goddesses at birth once again or not. What makes it worse is that we will have to completely use up the miracle functions on these discs if we do. Doing so will render all four backup discs useless, or at the very least much weaker than before." Histoire explained.

All four of them tensed. Bringing the goddesses and the candidates back would be great, but to possibly render them human? Or even worse, none of them knew when exactly they'd all be reborn. Mina was the first to snap. "That's absurd! What if it doesn't work at all? That'd be a complete gamble on everyone's national security!" Mina yelled.

"She's got a point," Kei chimed, "We'd be taking a huge risk. On top of that, rendering them all human doesn't help us much either. And what of their human friends? There seems to be more downsides to this deal than up." Kei asked.

Histoire nodded. "IF and the others are already part of the reincarnation cycle naturally. The only reason the goddesses weren't included is because their souls are trapped in the sword." She explained. "However, if they are born human, they can be made CPUs by giving each a quarter of the original goddesses' powers. The candidates can have their powers restored with a tad less. Therefore, if we did the same again it matters not, if they are human or not now does it?" The tome added.

Chika sighed. "I see. What I don't understand is why we'd be giving them only a quarter. Why can't we just give them the entire disc?" She asked.

"That's because there probably won't be more than a quarter to give this time. Am I correct Histoire?" Kei asked.

Histoire nodded. "That is correct." She replied. "They were born goddesses originally. Just to restore them would take twenty five percent of the discs' powers. Even before that, we'd require at least twenty percent from each disc to give to each candidate, and another twenty from each to free them from the sword. And earlier, I used ten percent from each disc to purge the gehaburn of its curse so that no one can use its dark power. That's already seventy-five percent, and I vouch that we use the rest of it to protect our lands." Histoire explained.

Kei put a thoughtful finger to her lips. "The numbers do look bad, I will admit. We need to each dish our sixty-five percent of our discs' powers just to revive them all. And ten percent's already been used up. That leaves us twenty-five percent to defend our lands with. Even worse, if it doesn't work, we'll have wasted all of that energy for nothing." Kei mumbled to herself.

Chika nodded. "It's already a big risk, but I propose we make another wager: we each also divvy up five percent of our discs to each goddess, giving them another ten percent from each land's worth of power." She said.

The group looked at her as if she had gone mad. "Are you out of your mind?" Mina yelled.

"If we do that and it doesn't work, Gamindustri will probably be destroyed by the onslaught of remaining monsters!" Kei exclaimed.

"But say it bestows them with a new power!" Chika yelled. "What if it gave them a power strong enough to defeat Arfoire? They'd have another thirty percent of power each, strengthening the goddesses to forty percent, and the candidates to thirty-five. I'd say it'd increase our odds a lot more than they are currently!" She reasoned.

Mina shook her head. "And if it doesn't? Chika we all want to see them again, but being pointlessly reckless isn't going to get us anywhere-"

"And here I thought you'd understand." Chika cut her off. "Of all people you loved those three like daughters!" Chika yelled. "Wouldn't you do anything to have them back?" She asked quietly.

"Not if it means be reckless, and foolish. If she were still here Lady Blanc, nor the twins would want me to carry myself so disgracefully." Mina replied through a forced tone.

Histoire sighed. This wasn't going anywhere very quickly. "Arguing is getting us nowhere." She said to the group. "If this keeps up, we'll all be without goddesses. At this rate, nothing will be done and all of Gamindustri will collapse either from the impending monster onslaught or the lack of stability!" She added. "How about this: should we agree to this plan, we all get one request each. That request must be carried out by the other parties. The only request I will ban is the taking of shares from any of the four nations. We saw how well that turned out recently. Agreed?" She offered.

Kei sighed. "It's still a ridiculous plan, but I guess… I'll agree to it if that's the case. My condition is this: I want Planeptune's scientific knowledge database." Kei demanded.

Histoire was shocked. She hadn't thought Kei would take advantage of such a fragile situation to make serious, political demands. "Do you realize what you are asking for? Planeptune prides itself on its scientific advances!" Histoire replied.

Kei shook her head. "Aside from share taking, you said anything goes. That is my condition. Lady Neptune and Lady Noire were friends so the sharing of information shouldn't be such a big deal should it?" The grey haired oracle said exasperated. At that moment Kei finally understood Lady Noire's sentiments regarding Planeptune folk: they're slightly crazy and that madness of theirs was contagious. It didn't help that the three oracles held a great deal of spite with Planeptune for what their candidate had done to their nations as a whole.

Histoire knew what Kei was up to. It was all a matter of taking Planeptune's know how and Lastation's technology and work ethic to create something to top the other nations. She was already plotting to take shares indirectly! She sighed. A deal was a deal. "Very well, I will have a copy delivered to your doorstep by tomorrow Kei." Histoire said in defeat.

Kei smirked. If anything, she would at least fulfill Noire's dream of surpassing Planeptune. "As we are talking about the entire database, I want the magic-fusing technology research data my intelligence tells me you finished working on in secret with Lowee." Kei added. Histoire furrowed her brow. Kei was really going for the gold, she wanted everything and she was going to make sure she got every last zenny of what she was asking for.

Histoire nodded. "Very well then, that seals the deal with Lastation. I will go last. Chika, what is your condition?"

Chika sat back. "If we go through with it, I want Planeptune's forces to make up the main front of the military until the goddesses return. If they ever do that is." It was yet another hefty request.

Histoire knew she was in trouble. They all probably had the intention of making sure Planeptune had a very rough time recovering in the near future, but for what Histoire was going to ask for, she might as well let them have three requests each. Histoire could only nod her head, because she knew that when she lays out her request that they were not going to like it. There had to be a fair trade somewhere. "Very well, and I will make sure that they are distributed evenly amongst the four nations." She said again in defeat. At least if she said that, her nation would keep some of its military protection.

Everyone looked towards silent Mina, who immediately realized it was her turn. Her request was the odd ball. "I want full custody of the three of them if they're born human." She said quietly. Kei raised a surprised eyebrow, while Chika decided to stare into space in the opposite direction. "I don't trust anyone else to take care of them as well as I did." She explained.

It was a simple request, but the other oracles understood it completely. For obvious reasons though, Histoire let out a heavy sigh of relief. "Very well then, if that's what you really want Mina." Histoire replied.

"I hate your candidate for what she did, but I can't risk the happiness of Lady Blanc and the twins for that." Mina admitted. Histoire said nothing to that, she couldn't. "Which is why if it doesn't work, I want Planeptune to give Lowee a third of their artillery assets." Mina added.

Histoire and Kei paled. The people of Lowee were already really skilled in the art of war. One could even say they were even born masters of war. Give them the weapons, and their army is close to invincible in a fight amongst the people. Histoire had no choice though, especially after what Mina just said. "F-Fine. That seals that deal I take it Mina?" Mina nodded. Technically she made two requests, but she'll only get one of the two depending on the circumstances.

Histoire now prayed more than ever that all went well. Finally, it was her turn. "You're all going to hate me for what I want." She warned.

Mina raised an eyebrow, while Chika and Kei remained indifferent. "Just remember Histoire, I refuse to invest more than what I'm getting back." She countered.

"As long as it isn't too much, I won't mind." Chika muttered.

"…" Mina said nothing.

"…I want to release Nepgear from the sword." Everyone went silent again. Not a single soul in the room dared to breathe. "I know you three had every intention of leaving her trapped in the sword, but I don't think Neptune, Rom, Uni, or even Very would ever approve of punishing Nepgear-"

"Do not bring Vert into this!" Chika yelled. "If they reincarnate I doubt Neptune would notice anyway if we don't tell her!" Chika exclaimed. "The girl was such an oblivious child-"

Kei crossed her arms. "…Somehow, I had a feeling that would be what you would request. It was to be expected though, I suppose." She muttered.

Mina broke her silence. "Then, how about this? We let her out, but we don't give her, her candidate powers? In fact, that'd leave all of us some extra energy in our backup discs." She offered.

Chika raised an eyebrow. "I guess it would render the girl harmless if we did that." She said more to herself than anyone else in the room.

Kei shook her head. "I'm afraid it's not that simple." Kei theorized, looking to Histoire for confirmation.

Histoire nodded. "I did say that any deal we name other than the taking of shares is legal. Therefore, to make me keep my end of the deal, you must also agree to mine." Histoire explained.

Mina growled. "Damn it… Fine. You can have your candidate back, but I expect you to keep her on a leash. Am I understood Histoire?" She demanded angrily.

Histoire nodded. "Yes, I promise you something like before will never happen again Mina." Histoire replied.

Kei sat back, finally relaxed. "So, with that I conclude that our deal is complete?" She asked.

Everyone nodded to each other. "Very well then," Histoire said, "I need you three to come with me though." A door seemed to open on its own to their left.

Kei seemed puzzled. "Where are we going?" She inquired.

Histoire's face seemed uncertain. "We're going to the chamber of gehaburn. Or more specifically, we're going to try and get the girls back." She explained.

Without another word the remaining three oracles followed Histoire out the door and through the corridors, off to the chamber where the once cursed sword lay sleeping. A deal was made, a deal made completely on hypotheticals without even the guarantee that the three actual humans of this group would ever see their goddesses again, they grabbed hold of this single remaining chance. What happens next is all up to the gears of destiny now…

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Author's Notes: 

I hope this explained a few more things. I figure that since this is still part of the prologue, that I should at least update this part as quickly as possible. The next chapter will be explaining the situation with the oracles. After all, there's currently no guarantee that they'll even see the goddesses again should they be reborn perhaps a full century from their current time. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter despite the massive info dump. On the bright side, one more prologue chapter and we'll finally be at the actual story! Stay tuned! ^ ^"

_**Next Time – Overture, Final Act: The Gamble**_


	3. Overture, Final Act: The Gamble

_**Overture, Final Act: The Gamble **_

The four oracles finally found themselves in a chamber containing several white pillars. On a large, circular platform, there were four emblems, each probably representing the four nations. On top of that platform was a much smaller platform of similar shape. Upon that at last, was the pedestal where the gehaburn lay. The four took a moment to gaze at the blade before taking any more steps forward. They all probably wanted a good look at the cause of this great tragedy one last time before they got to work. Kei was the first to speak. "So, what do we do exactly Histoire?"

Histoire took a few more steps forward, stepping onto the first platform and towards the emblem with the large "P" on it. "Find your emblems," She ordered, "the discs will know what to do from there." She explained. Shortly afterwards, a small orb of purple light began to float around her.

Kei found herself standing on an emblem that was purple silver in color. It had the letter, "B" written into it. Soon enough, a white sphere of light began to float around her head. "I take this as a mission accomplished?" She asked.

Histoire nodded. Looking to the other two oracles, she said, "Come now, we must make haste." She urged.

Chika nodded, and found her way to her icon, an emblem with the letter, "G" engraved into it. Soon enough, a green sphere of energy found its way to her and began to orbit her body.

Finally, Mina took her place on the final icon with the letter, "W" engraved into it. Eventually, a sphere of blue energy began to float around her. The four were finally gathered.

At first it didn't seem like anything was happening. The oracles stood there for a moment. Chika crossed her arms, obviously vexed. "What's up with this? Nothing's happening!" She complained.

"Patience Chika, it's loading." Histoire replied.

"Tch, leave it to such an important operation to have long loading periods." Kei muttered.

Finally, the entire platform they stood on began to glow. The four lights quickly flew into the air, combined into a single, golden light and collided with the gehaburn. The blade was no sooner than a second later bathed in a golden aura. "Fellow oracles," Histoire began, "Do you agree to the contracts we have drawn? And do you accept the consequences for what we are about to do?" She asked. Mina nodded, again no words from her. Kei crossed her arms and nodded with Chika following suit. Histoire smiled. "Then, with permission from all four representatives of the four nations we request the release of our goddesses from the gehaburn!"

The room shook. It felt like a large earthquake, knocking everyone but the floating Histoire on to their bottoms. "Wh-What is this?" Kei asked aloud.

Suddenly a flash of blinding, golden light burst forth from the still quaking room. Everyone quickly reached to cover their eyes, but were a tad too slow for the speed of light. Finally, after having been shaken up, and easily having lost a portion of their sight, the oracles were met with their greatest reward: there stood the goddesses once again. Well, ghosts of them. They were as transparent as the holograms to that anime with the holographic monsters. Which were actually not that transparent judging by how they looked on the television.

"Yo Histy! How's it girl?" Neptune asked in her usual, bubbly voice.

Noire giggled, "We make our grand reappearance and you say something like that? Honestly Neptune, have you any class?" She complained half-heartedly.

"It's… Good to see everyone again." Blanc muttered from the side.

"Yes, it's wonderful to be free again. You wouldn't believe how terribly cramped it was in there!" Vert added.

"VERT! Lady Vert!" Chika couldn't contain herself, she ran towards the apparition, and in her attempt to embrace her fell to the ground as she ran through her. She quickly twirled around, looking up at Vert completely horrified.

Vert smiled at the girl sadly. "Yes, I am still dead Chika."

Tears came to Chika's eyes. "No, this can't be true! Tell me it's not true Vert!" She yelled. She pleaded. Her sobs were overwhelming, her body racked with sorrow. To never again be able to embrace her beloved Vert was a fate far worse than Hell for her.

Vert shook her head. "I'm afraid there's not much I can say to support you right now Chika." She admitted sadly.

After a few moments, the sisters made their appearance. Uni found her way to Noire, embracing her. "Don't ever do something like that again." Uni ordered. "It hurt so much." Uni forced out between sobs.

Noire nodded, closing her eyes. She gently ran a hand through Uni's hair as she attempted to soothe the young candidate. "I know, and I don't plan on leaving you like that ever again. I promise." Looking over to a paling Kei, she grinned. "Don't think I left you out of the reunion. I missed you too Kei." She said to the oracle. "Of course, it's not like I would've been disappointed if you weren't here to greet us." She added.

Kei nodded, smiling. "I'm happy to see you again as well, Lady Noire." Noting Uni's displeasure at being left out, she added, "And of course, you too Uni." She replied.

Uni grinned. "That was much better." She said in her usual impish tone of voice.

Blanc looked over to Mina, who seemed at a loss for words. "It's great to see you too, Mina." She said. Looking over to the twins, she urged them to her, who immediately ran to her and embraced her. "I'm sure they're happy to see you too." She added.

"I-I was so scared sis. Don't leave us like that again!" Ram yelled.

"I wanna go home… And eat Mina's cooking." Rom muttered.

Mina smiled, her eyes watering. "And I missed you three as well." She said weakly.

Finally, Nepgear came face to face with her sister. "You're not going to leave me again right?" She asked with a stiff voice.

Neptune smiled, shaking her head. "Bah, c'mon Nep. Jr, the fight's over! There's no need to be so stiff now!" She exclaimed. Nepgear refused to budge, causing Neptune to embrace her little sister and pat her head. "You've been strong long enough kiddo. It's okay now. It's all over and donesies!" And that was it. For three long years, Nepgear had longed to hear not even those words, but the lively voice of her beloved sister. The tears began to fall, and soon enough Nepgear was sobbing in Neptune's arms. Neptune giggled. "Alrighty, c'mon blubberbutt, everyone's watching y'know." She chastised.

Nepgear's body shook. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." She cried. "All I ever wanted was to see you again. During that time I made friends too, friends I really treasured more than anything else in the world. I just don't get it. I don't even know how it ended up like this!" She yelled through her sobs. It was a scene that was almost touching enough for the oracles to forget their grudge with the girl. Almost, but not entirely.

Neptune couldn't really joke around, it was an atmosphere Noire could tell she wasn't really used to. So, she decided to help out. "You did what you had to Nepgear. None of us blame you for what you've done." Noire told the taller purple-haired girl.

Uni nodded. "You were the one I trusted with protecting Gamindustri right? I'd have rather our reunion not involved you crying like a baby." She teased.

Nepgear sniffled. "Uni?" She asked fearfully. 'This must all be some kind of dream.' She thought to herself. 'They're gone, and they're never coming back.' Nepgear continued in her despair.

"Hey, quit your internal moaning and get over here! Isn't it enough to have me compliment you?" Honestly." Uni demanded. Nepgear looked up. Sure enough, Uni was still there.

Swifter than IF, Nepgear embraced Uni tightly. "Y-You have no idea, how much I missed you." She admitted.

Uni blushed. "A-Alright already! Geez! …I missed you too, Nepgear." Uni replied, returning the hug.

Noire snickered, her big sister urges kicking in. "Ah-ha! So this is what things were like with you two behind closed doors!" She exclaimed, obviously implying something lewd.

Uni flushed. "N-No! I just missed her! Is that so bad?" She retorted. "Sides," She began, grinning sadistically, "I'm surprised you haven't invited Neptune to come and hug you yet, seeing as she was apparently your swimsuit buddy-"

"Enough! I get it!" Noire quickly interjected. Noting where Neptune wasn't where she was standing earlier, she asked aloud, "Speaking of Neptune, where is-"_BOING._ Noire raised an eyebrow. Then, she felt a particular part of her chest bouncing. She flushed, her body shaking with annoyance. She knew who the culprit was. She had done something similar to this in the first game. "Neptune…" Noire muttered angrily.

Neptune snickered. "I figured if we were gonna start gettin' all silly that I'd have some fun. C'mon Noire, you know you like it~" She teased.

"Th-That is not the issue here!" Noire yelled. Realizing her mistake when Vert wryly smiled at her, she immediately added, "And I do not like it! That is, not to say that I hate it! Ugh! Neptune!"

"Alright, alright you big party pooper. You can be such a buzz kill sometimes pigtails." Neptune teased, releasing the twin-tailed girl.

Vert laughed to herself. "After being trapped in such a dark, cramped space, such a scene is very refreshing." She admitted.

Blanc snickered. "For once we agree." She muttered.

Noire fumed. "You two! Don't you two start making any weird assumptions! I just said it isn't like that!" She yelled.

Vert laughed at her. "Whatever you say, Lady Black Heart." She replied mockingly.

Blanc smiled tauntingly. "Whatchya gonna do about it if we say no? We're already frickin dead so your threats don't mean shit." She said.

Noire turned even redder, if that was possible but refused to say anymore.

"Noire's tsundere tendences aside," Blanc added, smirking when Noire gave her a dirty glare, "I assume there's a reason that you've all come together to extract us from the sword?" She asked.

Histoire nodded. "Yes, we are going to revive you." She explained.

Neptune cheered. "Alright! So does that mean we get to like, eat food again and stuff! This is so, awesome! Nep. Jr can finally make me pancakes again!" Neptune exclaimed, almost high on her happiness.

Histoire felt a drop of sweat roll down the back of her head. "N-No not exactly like that Neptune. We're going to put you back into the cycle of reincarnation." She explained further.

Noire, Blanc, Vert and the sisters froze. Neptune however, didn't quite seem to catch on. "Whatever, details, details. As long as I get to stuff some yummies into me I'm happy!~" She replied.

Histoire sighed. "What I'm saying Neptune is that the cycle of reincarnation is variable. You may not be born goddesses again if we do this." She said exasperated.

Neptune froze, dead in her tracks. "W-Wait what? But variable means that there are endless possibilities! For all we know Nep. Jr might not even be, well, my Nep. Jr anymore! And if that happens," Neptune fell to her knees, "No more pancakes!" She exclaimed in horror.

Noire sighed. "Neptune that's the least of our worries! You're a complete free loader. If you're born human you'll actually have to get a job!" She chimed.

Neptune felt her skin paling. 'Get a job' rung in her head like a funeral bell. "Well this is totally lame." Neptune complained. "This is like, the mega gamble or something! It's worse than that roulette ability in that game with the blue bomber dude that had real bad odds. Except, our odds are probably better." She added.

Noire face palmed and shook her head. She would have no more to say about this ordeal of Neptune's.

Vert on the other hand, was curious about other matters. "Well, I take it since you've gone this far. You're just prepping us for the inevitable. Am I correct?" She asked the oracles.

"Correct," Chika corroborated, "We have perhaps about two minutes left with you all until you're pulled back into the cycle." She explained.

Histoire nodded. "When you are reborn, odds are that you all won't remember much about your past lives, if anything at all. So hopefully if worse comes to worse, you find your ways to the basilicom. If you're reborn human we can take care of that then." She told them.

Nepgear raised an eyebrow. "How would you do that Histoire?" She asked curiously.

Histoire shook her head. "You'll see." She answered. "In the mean time, let's all pray that you're just born goddesses naturally." She suggested.

Everyone seemed to agree on that sentiment. This time, the platform above them began to glow, and pillars of white light began to shoot up around the goddesses.

"Wh-What the?" Blanc exclaimed.

Kei nodded to them. "This is your ticket out girls. We hope to see you soon." She said to them.

Noire nodded to her, and then to Uni. Uni smiled. "We'll see you soon then Kei. Try to keep that paperwork to a minimum by the time we get back y'hear?" She demanded.

Kei laughed. "I'll try but I won't make any guarantees. After all, that's beyond the scope of my duties." She replied.

Nepgear and Histoire's eyes met. Soon, Nepgear was aware that the eyes of all the oracles were on her. "I-I don't know how to thank you for this-" She began.

"Noire and Uni forgave you, and they will be back where they belong. I've no reason to spite you." Kei interjected.

"I guess Vert wouldn't want me to hold a grudge, fine, I forgive you too." Chika said to the purple haired girl.

Mina crossed her arms. "How you can thank us? Just don't screw up this time." She ordered.

Nepgear's face immediately went to an all business expression. "I can promise you that." She answered.

Mina smiled at her. "Good then, off you all go. See you soon." She replied.

Looking at Histoire, the young CPU candidate smiled. "See ya soon Histoire." Nepgear said sadly.

Histoire smiled. "It'll feel a lot better when you two are home again." She said back.

Nepgear smiled, a single tear rolling down her face. "Yeah," she replied. With that, the white light engulfed all eight of the goddesses and erupted into a brighter flash that lasted for several moments. When it dissipated, the eight were gone. All that remained was the sword and the four oracles.

Kei crossed her arms. "You said on estimate it'd be one hundred years right?" She asked.

Histoire nodded. "By my calculations, it should take all eight of them roughly seventy-seven to eighty years to be born, and then that extra twenty years for time to become the appropriate age." She confirmed.

Chika sighed. "All this waiting, it's killing me." She complained.

Mina readjusted her glasses. "Well this next century will feel even longer." She chimed.

Looking back at Histoire, Kei asked, "And you're utterly sure that what you said is true?" She asked.

Histoire nodded. "By performing this ritual as the oracles of the four nations, we have bound ourselves to a pact with ancient divine ones. So long as we remain guardians of our lands, and so long as the faith in the goddesses of Gamindustri remains strong and alive, we will live as well." Histoire explained.

Kei sighed, nodding her head. "I suppose it's fair. I just pray that it works as described. I'd rather not die before seeing the fruits of our deal Histoire." She replied.

Chika nodded. "And I do hope this doesn't involve aging. I'll never have a chance with Lady Vert again if I turn wrinkly and old." She said.

Mina giggled. "Well with everything we've gambled on so far, we've really no choice but to hope for the best now." She chimed.

Histoire nodded. "Our business here is done. Let's go back and prepare. The girls won't like it if they come back and their home's a mess." She suggested.

Kei nodded. "An excellent idea Histoire. I say we all head home. There are a lot of preparations to make." She agreed.

"Be sure to keep in touch everyone. I want the latest developments, twenty-four-seven." Chika ordered.

"Yes, let's go home, to our new home." Mina agreed. Yes, to their new home. A Gamindustri suspended in the sky, floating endlessly over a new continent in a brand new dimension.

And so the oracles left, but not without looking at the sword that began this new turn in the gears of fate. What would become of their decisions, and ultimately how would it affect not just the goddesses of the future, but the world? No one can truly say. All one can hope for is for a new beginning, brimming with hope in this hour of desperate measures.

* * *

[_One Century Later_, _Goddess Era, Year 21XX Unspecified Moment in Time_]

"Hey guys! Look at me! I'm queen of the world!" Neptune shouted from the top of a building in Planeptune. The drop could be worse with all the taller buildings in Planeptune, but it was a good twenty five feet high.

Histoire panicked as she fluttered 'round and 'round the tower in hopes of making it to the top before Neptune did something foolish. "Neptune! Please come down from there! It's dangerous!" She yelled.

Meanwhile, on the ground Noire, Vert, and Blanc watched with uninterested eyes. "Geez, she never learns does she? I feel bad that Histoire has to look after her so much. She's already nineteen for crying out loud!" Noire complained.

"But you like that about her don't you?" Vert teased.

"…You're such a tsundere." Blanc added.

Noire flushed. "Th-That is not it at all! You two are so-ugh!" She retorted.

Meanwhile, Nepgear, Uni, Rom and Ram were venturing through the catacombs within the dungeon known as LAN Castle. They were on a quest today. "I dunno about this guys. Histoire says to stay out of the castle. There could be really dangerous things in here." Nepgear advised. As they turned every corner, as they made their way deeper and deeper into the castle, Nepgear's head began to ache more and more.

As they ventured, they finally found themselves at the spot; that secret room, where that accursed sword once lay. "This is it," Nepgear began in a trance-like state.

Uni looked at her, her face obviously covered in confusion. "This is what Nepgear? There's nothing here. Let alone what we came here for." Uni replied.

Nepgear shook her head. "This is it… This… Is where it all began." She mumbled.

And this is where it shall begin anew…

_**Ultradimension Neptunia: Crimson Odyssey**_

* * *

Author's Notes: 

Okay, so the cheese factor on the ending is wayyyyy over 9000 (in Neptune's words anyway), but I figured it was the best place to leave it. This is not where the story picks up. If this were a real game, this is the "cutscene" after the introduction prologue part of the game that depicts a scene later in the game that's very important to the game's story. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the Prologue, because we've finally made it to the actual story! See ya next update.

_**Next Time – Stage I: Destined Encounters **_


	4. Stage 1: Destined Encounters

Author's Notes: Hey everyone, long time no see. Sorry, I got buried under my Summer homework. Anyway, important notes for this chapter are that the ages and birthdays for the characters are completely made up for this story. This is also written in the hypothetical situation that it's an actual game so with the exception of the tutorial screens, whenever a new feature like new attacks, or new extra scenes for the "game" pop up, there will be a small note of it. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the latest read.

* * *

**Stage 1: Destined Encounters**

_[Goddess Era, Year 21XX]_

_[Biological Ages of the Goddesses]_

_Ram & Rom, Age 9_

_Nepgear, Age 14_

_Uni, Age 14_

_Neptune, Age 19_

_Noire, Age 18_

_Vert, Age 20_

_Blanc, Age 20_

It was another beautiful day in Celestia, the birds were singing, the sun was ever shining. Then again, it was always a beautiful day on this divine plane. Everything was in complete tranquility. In another moment however, that was no longer going to be the case. Somewhere deep within the Celestian Castle, an alarm clock rung loudly and persistently. Neptune groaned as she rolled over, trying to ignore the noise. This process continued for about half an hour until Neptune finally produced a hammer from what seemed to be hammer space. "Ugh, shuuuuut up! Crackers I hate those things. I wish Histy wouldn't buy 'em." She complained as she rolled back into slumber.

In a matter of minutes, Histoire's voice interrupted her slumber. "Neptune, please wake up. It is time for breakfast." She told her.

In an instant Neptune's eyes flew open and she immediately flew out of bed. "Breakfast? Is it Nepgear's asskickery pancakes?" She cheered. "Please say it is~" She begged with a bubbly voice.

Histoire shook her head. There was nothing wrong with what Neptune had said. It was how she was dressed. Histoire would tell her over and over to sleep with a longer night shirt or a gown for the sake of decency, but of course Neptune was running around in just her striped panties and night shirt. "Neptune, what did I say about-"Histoire never got to finish her attempt at chastising Neptune.

"Bahh, Histy! Those gown thingies are totally uncomfy and long shirts are jus' not my thing!" The young goddess complained.

Histoire was really rethinking raising these girls on Celestia. It's been roughly eighty years since she brought them here, but because of that they haven't aged a day. When it came to their maturity, it definitely showed. As proven by Neptune anyway. "Please hurry to the table. Everyone's been waiting for about ten minutes now." Histoire begged.

Neptune nodded, throwing her large hoodie over her night shirt. "'Kay. I'll shower later I guess. Let's roll out!" The girl cheered.

Histoire gulped. "Neptune, that isn't even a gaming ref-"

"Let's go Histy! Food waits for no one~" Neptune beckoned. She wasn't even bothering to listen to Histoire as she pranced down the corridor.

Histoire giggled. "Fine then, let's go." She replied.

Moments later, they found themselves at the breakfast table. The fact that nearly everyone was glaring at Neptune was a little less than obvious.

Blanc, in an attempt to calm her rage was sucking on a popsicle stick. "Do you have any idea how frickin' annoying it is that you make us wait EVERY morning for breakfast?" She asked icily.

Vert nodded. "Indeed. Not even as a goddess but as a lady Neptune you should make an effort to be prompt." She scolded.

Neptune's face dropped. "Bah, c'mon guys! It's impossible to wake up at this hour. You should try sleeping in a little more. How can a goddess be beautiful without her beauty sleep?" She argued. Looking over to a black haired goddess with twin tails, she gave her her best puppy dog eyes. "C'mon Noire help me out here. They're gonna kill me!" Neptune begged.

Noire ignored her and continued to sip her tea. "Don't involve me in this. It's your fault for being late!" She retorted. Seeing Neptune's bummed face, she added, "J-Just don't do it again. Hurry up and sit down." She sighed as Neptune's face lit up.

"Ah Noire, I knew you'd have my back." She told her cheerily.

Noire felt her face meet her palm. "You have severe discipline problems you know that?" She asked.

"Ah right! Bring on the pancakes!" Neptune cheered, completely ignoring her.

Noire scowled. 'Why you little-'She thought to herself angrily.

Just when it seemed that everyone was about to tear Neptune's head off, the group was interrupted by a girlish cough.

"Sorry for the wait everyone," Nepgear said. "Your food is ready." She announced. She placed a plate of pancakes in front of each goddess. Neptune's had the largest stack, with Vert's coming in second but not even by a mile. Blanc and Noire's plates were easily the most normal. On the second table, Nepgear placed one plate down for herself, one before Uni, one before Ram and one before Rom.

Ram growled. "Nepgear, can't you do anything about that sister of yours? She's always late!" She complained.

"Nepgear's sister is… funny…" Rom added silently.

Uni crossed her arms. "Why do we have to wait for her anyway? Geez!" She whined.

Nepgear smiled nervously. "I-I'm sorry guys. Neptune's just a bit of a heavy sleeper." She answered.

Uni almost felt her eye twitching. "A bit?" She repeated incredulously.

Nepgear felt a nervous bead of sweat roll down her cheek. "A-Anyway," She began. "Are you guys excited? We may get to go to the human world today!" She said, hoping to change the subject.

Uni crossed her arms. "It'd be fun. Since we don't age in Celestia, it'd be nice to grow a centimeter or two." She remarked.

Ram smirked. "Yay! I'd get taller!" She cheered.

Rom smiled. "I want to get taller too…" She added softly.

Neptune grinned widely. "That's right! This is so tubular! We get to go to the human world!" She exclaimed.

"Exciting." Noire deadpanned. "If we get clearance today it certainly won't be a leisurely trip." She added.

Vert nodded. "That's right. The last time we were down, we visited Leanbox for a public appearance." She chimed.

"The time before that we visited Lastation, and before then we visited Lowee." Blanc reminded.

Neptune pumped her fist. "Which leaves us with only my land to explore- Planeptune!" She said to the group.

Unbeknownst to the group, Noire was very pleased at the moment. 'Sweet, now I may be able to get some awesome cosplay goods for cheap instead of having to order them on the internep! Maybe I can even find some new manga!' She mentally exclaimed.

"I hear Planeptune has the best gaming technology in the world! Perhaps I can learn a few things to spice up my consoles with~" She mumbled.

Breakfast went on this way for roughly an hour, exchanging banter and eating. When all was said and done, Nepgear and Uni were left to wash the dishes.

"Ugh, this sucks! I wanted to train today. How am I supposed to beat my sister if I'm not training every day?" Uni whined.

Nepgear smiled. "Oh it's not that bad. Since you and I are ahead on our studies, I got Histoire to let us out for our own training time later today." She told her.

Uni shook her head. "Thanks Nepgear, but Noire trains twice a day. She's ahead of her studies too so she usually goes out to the field for a second round." Uni replied.

Nepgear giggled. "But then there are other times when she helps tutor Neptune. If it weren't for Noire I don't know what I'd do with her." Nepgear reminded.

Uni sighed. "I don't know what that's about. Whenever we go to our side of the castle, she's one of the things Noire talks about the most." She explained. "It makes me glad though. If it weren't for Neptune, I think Noire would spend too much time studying and training." Uni added softly.

Nepgear smiled. "You really love Noire don't you Uni?" She asked her.

Uni nodded. "She's the coolest. She can do anything and everything. One day you watch, I'll beat her at something though! For sure!" She replied.

Nepgear giggled. "Oh, by the way Uni,"

"Yeah?"

"That was the last dish." Nepgear told her.

Uni looked; in her hand was the final dish. Nice and dry. Putting it on the dish rack, the two dried their hands and left the kitchen. It was around ten in the morning, so the two decided that they'd go to the training field since they were given some free time by Histoire. When the two got there, they found Noire and surprisingly, Neptune sparring. To be here at this hour, you have to be ahead on your studies. Apparently, Noire had tutored Neptune enough to pass the all of the recent exams and more.

The sisters watched with wonder as Neptune managed to eventually overpower Noire, and finally sent her flying with a magically empowered slash against Noire's blade. Noire landed lightly on her bottom, flinching as she landed.

"Ow…" She muttered quietly.

A moment later, she looked up to see Neptune offering her, her hand. "Looked like a rough landing. You okay pigtails?" Neptune asked bubbly.

Noire blushed before rolling her eyes, giggling. "Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks Neptune." She replied as Neptune helped her up.

Nepgear and Uni looked at each other for a moment, and then back to Noire and Neptune. "For some reason, I suddenly feel like we're intruding." Nepgear said with a nervous laugh.

"Y-Yeah. Maybe we can come back later when they're not around." Uni replied. The two began to walk away, but didn't realize that Noire and Neptune were already aware of their presence.

"Wonder where they're off to? I figured they came here to train." Noire muttered to herself.

Neptune hummed. "Well," She began. Pressing herself up against Noire, she said, "Perhaps they're getting lovey dovey like we are~" She teased.

Noire flushed and flew out of Neptune's arms, sailing at least fifty paces in the opposite direction. "W-W-What are you DOING!" She yelled.

Neptune snickered, then she giggled, then she out right burst into laughter. "Pfft, gahahahahahaha! Noire, I didn't know you were so funny!" She exclaimed through fits of laughter.

Noire flushed with anger and embarrassment. "G-Geez Neptune! Cut it out!"

Trying to calm her laughter, Neptune waved a hand at Noire. "Sorry, sorry," she said to her. Suddenly, an image came to her mind. It was one of Noire wearing a blue swim suit, a very nice one at that. But something wasn't right: it was inside out. Her laughter stopped cold. Their conversation just now was very similar to how Neptune reacted when she saw the swimsuit inside out. "Hey, Noire?" She began uneasily.

Noire raised an eyebrow. It was unusual for Neptune to ever sound unsure of herself. "What's up?" She asked worriedly.

"Have you ever…" Neptune began.

"Yes?" Noire urged.

"Worn a swimsuit in front of me, inside out at that?" She asked loudly.

Noire fell over, looking around quickly to see if anyone heard or saw that and glared at Neptune. "And just why would I ever do that?" Noire yelled at her.

Neptune stepped back. "I-I dunno. For some reason I got the mental image of it and I wondered if maybe it was a memory or something. You know like how sometimes in RPGs those can be visions of the past, the future or a totally different scenario! Like the guy with the golden eye under his eyepa-"

"Neptune! You pervert!" Noire yelled a multi-colored ball of magic shining in her hand. "Celestial Flare!" She yelled. As she did so, a burst of seemingly rainbow colored fire roaring out of her hand to strike Neptune.

Neptune screamed as she was scorched by the fire. Thankfully, in Celestia you can't take as much damage as you would in the human world so she escaped relatively unharmed. "I-I see you finally got your Celestian skill down." Neptune said nervously.

It was a compliment, but Noire was simply too annoying with Neptune at the moment to accept. "I'm not talking to you right now!" She retorted. Meanwhile, her mind was a mess. There was too much information running in there at once! 'Neptune has a swimsuit fetish? Why was she picturing me? And why was I wearing it inside out? Oh my gosh what was she thinking?' While lost in thought, Noire didn't notice Neptune tapping her shoulder. When she finally noticed, she wasn't pleased with the invasion of her personal space. "Neptune! What did I just-"

Noire stopped when she noticed that Neptune was giving her, her famous puppy dog eyes.

"I'm sowwy Noire! Please forgive me~" Neptune begged.

Noire flushed. 'S-So cute!' Noire mentally cheered. She crossed her arms and looked away, trying to ignore how cute Neptune was at the moment. "O-Okay but I better not catch you thinking up weird stuff like that again!" Noire said bashfully.

Neptune smiled. "You got it! Hey, wanna have another go at it, no one's watching~" Neptune asked teasingly.

Noire sighed. "Please stop saying things that can be taken in completely different contexts." She begged.

_[Extra Event Acquired: Combine?] _

_[Noire obtained Celestial Flare] _

_[Neptune obtained Celestial Quake]_

_[Blanc obtained Celestial Bifrost]_

_[Vert obtained Celestial Storm] _

Later that morning, Blanc and Vert were in the middle of a sparring session. It had been officially settled that the group would be leaving for Planeptune today. So, the two figured they should get some practice in since Neptune and Noire slipped out and got an extra hour in on them. Their powers were only partially refined, so the group has since been training on Celestia for many, many years. To this day, Blanc is the only one who can access the fabled Hard Drive Divinity or HDD and properly use its power for an extended period of time. Vert is capable of it and can last almost as long as Blanc can while Noire is just barely capable of holding the transformation for an hour, and while Neptune has yet to acquire her transformation at all, only capable of partially summon its powers.

Blanc's axe met with Vert's drill spear as the two did combat in the air. Vert huffed as the strain of using her HDD finally began to wear her down. Blanc chuckled cruelly as she swung her axe with all of her might, slightly increasing its size as she did so. "What's a matter thunder tits? Gonna overheat again? Don't tell me I'm gonna have to have Histoire come and cool you down again!" She spat mockingly.

Vert growled as she thrust her spear upwards at Blanc. Blanc however blocked with her axe, safely halting any damage. "C-Curse you! You flat little brat!" She yelled as she angrily tried to slice her way through Blanc's guard. Even after moments of slicing her methods seemed to be completely useless as Blanc merely shook off her blows.

Blanc snickered at her, cheekily waving her axe at her. She breathed heavily however, slowly leveling her axe afterwards. They were both slowly reaching their limits. "T-Time. Any longer and we'll both run out of power." Blanc advised.

Vert shrugged her shoulders, floating to the ground with Blanc as they resumed their human forms. "I agree, any longer and I would have overheated." She agreed.

Blanc looked at her watch. "You've made a new record: you can hold it for about an hour and fifty minutes. A little longer and you can match my record of two hours and fifteen minutes." She told the other girl quietly.

Vert smiled. "I've finally caught up to you it seems you cheeky little brat." Vert teased.

Blanc growled. "You haven't gotten there yet. You still have twenty five minutes to work your way up to." Blanc reminded.

Vert giggled. "Whatever. Let's go meet with the others. It's almost time to depart." Vert offered.

Blanc nodded to her. "Yes, let's go." She replied.

The two ventured through the many corridors before finding themselves in one of the many rooms in the castle. It had a round table, where the others sat with Histoire. For once, Neptune had managed to get somewhere on time but that's probably because Histoire threatened her that if she were late to the appearance for her own land that she'd tell Nepgear to not make pancakes for three whole years.

Histoire noted their worn appearances and asked, "Are you two tired? We can post pone the appearance for another hour." She told them.

Vert shook her head. "Oh, we're fine." She told the little fairy.

Blanc nodded. "Let's just get this over with. I wanna go back to reading my book after this." She answered.

Histoire nodded to them before smiling at the rest of the table. "Is everyone ready to leave?" She asked one more time.

Everyone nodded. "Yup!" They all answered. The group began to glow with the rest of the room and suddenly in a bright flash of light they were inside a giant orb of light. They exited the castle and were soon floating down from the castle in the heavens towards the floating continents a little lower in the sky. Their destination: Planeptune. It took them no longer than five minutes to arrive, standing on the balcony of the Planeptune Basilicom which seemed to stand above all of Planeptune. Beneath them they heard cheering, pretty enthusiastic cheering actually.

Neptune stood there for a moment, with Nepgear before grabbing her sister's left arm. She grinned at her. "Let's go sis! Our adoring public awaits!" She cheered.

Nepgear smiled at her and nodded. "Y-Yes, let's go!" She replied, following her sister's lead as they made their way to the front of the group. They waved as they looked over their people.

Neptune relished in the moment, but a strange feeling kept eating at her. 'It's weird. It's the first time I've been here and yet, I feel like I've always been here. Maybe I have amnesia! Wait, I think that's already happened to me once. My head feels strange." She thought to herself confusedly. The confusion only heightened when she laid eyes on two particular individuals in the crowd: a girl with brown hair and a green bow, and another with pink hair in a beige sweater. When they realized that Neptune was staring, they waved. Her headache only grew worse. 'Wait a sec, I know those two!' She thought to herself. A moment passed her by, a moment perhaps in a long forgotten time. She closed her eyes, and stopped waving at the crowd.

Everything went silent. Even Nepgear turned to look at her sister. The look on her face was unusual. Rather than confident and cheery, it was confused and lost. "Uh, hi everyone! It's me Neptune! You're favorite CPU and my darling sister Nepgear! Don't touch her though boys or you'll be answering to me~" She said to the crowd with her usually bubbly voice, her face beaming. The crowd resumed their cheers.

Nepgear on the other hand was not convinced. 'What's with sis? It's unlike her to freeze up in front of a crowd.' She thought to herself curiously. Looking back to the crowd, she too laid eyes on the brown haired girl, and the pink haired girl. Nepgear stared at them long and hard before she gripped her shirt for a moment. 'It's strange. I swear I've met those two before.' Looking at them for a little longer, she fought the strangest urge to cry. 'Why is it so painful to look at them?' She asked herself. 'When I was little, if I thought someone looked familiar, though I swore I had never met them once in my life, I'd feel this way. It felt like they'd slip away and I'd never see them again. I wonder why they look familiar to me.' Nepgear had little time to ponder on it. The crowd was awaiting her word. Finally, she waved to them with a nervous smile. "H-Hello everyone! I'm Nepgear, your CPU candidate! I-I'll work hard!" She said loudly.

Once again the crowd was roaring, and the two sisters were finally allowed to step out of the spotlight and retreat back inside the basilicom where the rest of the gang awaited them. "Well?" Noire asked.

"How'd it go?" Uni urged.

Nepgear giggled. "We both sorta froze up on stage but I think we left a good first impression." She answered.

Neptune made a victory sign. "We were totally awesome!" She boasted.

Histoire smiled at them. "Well then, shall we return home?" She asked the group.

They all nodded to her and without another word they all returned home. As they ascended towards Celestia, Neptune still could not get it out of her mind. She had a question constantly floating in her sub-consciousness. 'Why were those people so familiar to me?'

* * *

Author's Notes: I apologize for the late release. A lot came up. This story will be updated bi-monthly from here on in. I thank everyone for their patience and I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter. The extra scenes will appear in omakes chapters which will be released as separate chapters after every three chapters.

_**Next Time – Stage 2: The Grim Omen**_


	5. Stage 2: The Grim Omen

**Stage 2: The Grim Omen **

Neptune was unusually quiet during dinner. It wasn't something that went unnoticed by the other three goddesses, but of course they didn't say anything. The air was tense. It was a strange atmosphere and no one felt like talking. It was so quiet in fact that Histoire floated in to check on everyone. "Is everyone okay?" She asked worriedly.

Everyone nodded, but Neptune. "Ah, Histy! Look, I'm a little sleepy so Ima catch some z's 'kay? Night everyone." And with that, Neptune was headed for the doorway leading to the catacombs.

Noire rose from her seat. "I-I'm going too!" She announced loudly. Her face was burning when she caught a teasing smirk from Vert.

"Can't sit still knowing your beloved Neptune is down in the dumps?" Vert asked teasingly.

Blanc folded her arms. "Uke." Blanc muttered quietly as she sipped her tea.

Noire rolled her eyes. "A-Anyway, I'm going!"

"Sis wait up!" Uni stood to catch up to her sister, but Noire was long gone in search of Neptune. Slowly sitting back down she made a confused face to Nepgear. "What was that about?" She mouthed quietly.

Nepgear shook her head. "Don't know. Wanna sleep over tonight?" She mouthed back.

Uni grinned. "Sure." She muttered.

With that the two got up and left, leaving only the twins, Blanc and Vert in the room. Thankfully, it was the twins' turn to do the dishes tonight so they could leave as they pleased. For them, it was time to go on a sister hunt.

* * *

Neptune leaned against a pillar on an unknown side of the castle, staring at a tower on the far end. The only way in seemed to be through the door in front of her that took a path inside the castle all the way into the tower and up. Histoire had always told them under any circumstance to never enter this side of the castle. After today, Neptune was just full of questions and after today's incident, one she asked herself long ago had finally resurfaced, 'What could be in this part of the castle that Histy doesn't want us to see so badly?' She asked herself quietly. She took a step forward. "I-It's alright Neptune," She reassured herself, "There's probably some event triggering object on the other side of this door. Nope, there's no way there's some giant, unbeatable hidden boss on the other side that's super scary or something." She babbled.

"You gonna talk to yourself all day or are you gonna open that door?" Noire asked from behind her.

Neptune yelped and accidentally tripped. "Uh oh! Whoa!" She yelled as she fell through, hitting her head against the door in question, but not opening it. "Ow, hey watch it pigtails! You almost gave me a heart attack!" She exclaimed angrily.

Noire shook her head with a sigh. "So this is what was bugging you?" She asked quietly, helping Neptune up as she did so.

Neptune dusted herself off and shook her head. "No, but it's related I guess. I just wanna know what's behind this door y'know? Histy's always tellin' us to never go in so I wonder if there's some kind of amazing last resort weapon in here or something!" She explained.

Noire facepalmed. "Neptune, usually a weapon hidden like that is the weapon for the bad ending since it's so easy to acquire." She told her.

"But Noire, in the one game on Blanc's console there's a sword hidden in a castle's basement under the ocean." Neptune argued.

"That's a video game. Well, this is a video game too, but that's beside the point!" Noire countered.

"Uh, Noire I thought we weren't supposed to break the fourth wall." Neptune pointed out.

"It's your fault for saying unreasonable things. Seriously, you lack discipline." Noire complained.

"And you need to loosen up, but I can do that for you later if you want. Right now, I plan to take a look see-see inside. I gotta satisfy at least this part of my curiosity. You in? Or are you out?" Neptune shot back.

Noire didn't know what to say, but under the pressure of her own building curiosity she finally caved in. "Ugh, fine!" She yelled, "Let's go look, but if we get trapped in here and get caught it's totally your fault!" She said to her angrily.

Neptune pumped a fist. "Yes! Thanks Noire, I knew I could count on ya to join me. After all, one person dungeons tend to suck for the player." Neptune cheered.

Noire sighed. "Please don't make me regret this." She muttered.

"Make you regret what?" Blanc asked in a creepy voice.

"Uwaaaa! Blanc!" Noire screamed with astonishment. Beside the petite girl stood Vert who had her arms crossed, her face disapproving.

"I see you two planned to go snooping around in the tower." She said to them with a level voice.

"Baaaw! Vert!" Neptune moaned, "Don't you wanna look inside too? Don't tell me this hasn't peaked your curiosity!" She asked with a begging voice.

Vert hummed. "True, I do. But you know just as well as I do that Histoire said specifically not to enter that-"

"I find it interesting as well." Blanc chimed. "Let's go with them Vert. If we leave this to those two idiots, it's bound to result in disaster." She said softly. "Sides, castle dungeons are my specialty; aside from sewers anyway." She added.

Vert shrugged. "Fine, if all three of you are in then I will go as well. Someone needs to watch out for all of you." She said with defeat.

Neptune smiled. "Alrighty then, let's head on in!" She cheered.

The team took a step forward, but there was a minor problem. "Uh… Neptune?" Noire asked quietly.

Neptune turned to face her. "Hehe, sorry guys I don't know how to open the door." She explained sheepishly.

The three girls fell over in an anime like fashion. Of course, Blanc was the first to react angrily.

"You mean to freaking tell me you wanted to go in here and yet had no frickin' idea as to how you'd get in?" She yelled angrily.

"And knowing your luck Neptune, it probably needs a key." Noire complained.

"Oh relax it's a door. How hard could it be to unlock?" Vert chimed with a positive tone of voice.

The group looked up at the door; it was a large door with no handle on it. In the center, was a strange dragon like face with its mouth hanging wide open. Its face was menacing and unwelcome, as if to warn them one final time that they should leave while they still have the chance.

"Why don't we try sticking a hand in the dragon mouth?" Blanc finally suggested, eying the dragon's mouth.

Noire raised her eyebrow. "Fine, you can. I don't wanna risk spending the rest of my life missing a limb." She replied.

Neptune shrugged her shoulders. "'Guess I'll do it." She said with a slight sigh. Without hesitation she thrust her arm into the creatures mouth, hitting the door as she did so. She winced in pain and yelped. "Ow! That hurt! Geez stupid door! Must be some kinda decoration because there's definitely no hand-shaped key hole or some-"

[Analyzing: Planeptune CPU Neptune… Verified. The entrance will remain open for thirty minutes.] A metallic voice read monotonously.

The group seemed shocked as Neptune pulled her hand away and the door slowly creaked its way open. Neptune stared at the darkness they were met with; there was seemingly nothing beyond it.

"_Leave…"_ A voice warned threateningly.

Neptune perked up. 'Who was that? I heard a voice!' She thought to herself with shock.

Noire shivered and looked around her. 'I could've sworn I heard someone just now.' She thought to herself.

Blanc's eyes narrowed. 'I swore I heard someone just now.' Looking around, she peered into the darkness. 'This might be bad.' She thought worriedly.

Vert continued to look forward. 'Ghostly voices won't scare me! I made it through Fatal Snap II in a single evening.' She thought to herself smugly.

The air grew cold, and suddenly the four were shivering.

"_Why do you wish to enter? Nothing good awaits you within these accursed walls… Especially not for little girls like you. Leave, and allow me to return to my slumber."_ It told them darkly.

Neptune felt herself shake as she tried to take another step forward. "A-Anyone else hear a creepy voice in their head?" She asked shakily.

Noire nodded. "Good, I'm not imagining things." She replied.

"Oh my, now I really want to know what's in here! Drat, I should have brought my camera!" Vert exclaimed.

"This… Isn't good." Blanc muttered.

Neptune took a step back as a chilling wind forced Neptune's right foot off of the ground, forcing her off balance for a moment, causing her to take a step back. Suddenly from the darkness a shape began to form in front of them. Slowly from a pool of shadows a figure towered over them, standing just at a few centimeters taller than Vert! Its hair was wild and long, with deep, red eyes. The horns that protruded from the left and right side of its head were long and made it to the mysterious figure's chin. As for its body, it appeared to be human like, almost masculine in shape; it was too hard to tell. It seemed to be wielding a mysterious and yet to the girls familiar blade. _"I will warn you only this last time…"_ It told them darkly.

Neptune gulped, and the other girls almost started to shake save for Vert who tried to eye the creature from multiple angles.

It glared at them. _**"LEAVE WHILE YOU STILL CAN!"**_ It yelled almost dementedly.

Neptune and Noire immediately stepped back, moving further back then they intended when another gust of chilling air shoved against them. Vert finally seemed convinced, her shoulders quaking while Blanc merely stared at the mysterious shadow in a mix between awe and terror. Blanc was however the first to note that the shadow, as quickly as it appeared was now beginning to fade from the feet up.

"_I've warned you enough, but think of those you hold dear before you step through this door… And beware…"_ It almost seemed to smile as it said, _"of the false… advisor…"_ And just like that it was gone with the wind, black specks of dust seeming to follow the evening breeze.

Neptune stood there for a moment, trying to take it all in. "Ooookay this place's creepy meter is off the charts!" She exclaimed fearfully. She took a step back, only to be stopped by Noire.

"You're the one who wanted to check this place out. We're going in!" She said strictly.

Blanc nodded. "There shouldn't be any demons in a holy place like Celestia. This is a matter we must investigate as the CPUs." She mumbled.

Vert crossed her arms, summoning the spear to her right. "Besides Neptune, it could be a good chance for some evening exercise." She smiled devilishly as she slightly brandished the spear in her hands left and right.

Neptune swallowed as she looked at the darkness before them. "Well, let's go then! It's now or never right?" She replied.

The four nodded to each other as they took a step into the darkness, allowing themselves to enter the one part of the vast castle they had never explored- the forbidden tower.

* * *

Uni and Nepgear, who had witnessed the entire event quaked in their boots.

"N-Nepgear?" Uni asked.

"Y-Yeah?" Nepgear answered shakily.

"D-Did you see a really creepy monster in front of the door too?" Uni asked.

"Yeah, I did." Nepgear answered.

Uni paused for a moment. "…Wanna go in after them?" Uni asked.

Nepgear looked at the entrance. It just screamed dangerous to enter. "I'm not so sure that's a good idea Uni. Sides, didn't you think it was scary too? The monster I mean." Nepgear replied.

Uni blushed. "W-What? No! I wasn't scared! I just thought the thing looked creepy! So are we going in or not?" She half yelled.

Nepgear shivered as she looked at the door, nearing it with each step. Uni had the lead in front of them. "F-Fine… Let's go." Nepgear finally said with defeat.

Uni grinned. "Alright then," she said summoning her giant revolver, "let's go monster hunting." She said merrily as the two entered the darkness.

* * *

Ram and Rom eyed each other from across their bedroom as they continued their staring contest.

"Wonder where everyone went off to in such a hurry." Ram muttered aloud.

"…I heard a really creepy voice in my head earlier. It was saying to 'leave'." Rom answered shakily.

Ram raised an eyebrow. "Really? Me too." Getting up from the bed, she looked outside and coincidentally at the forbidden tower. "Wonder what's up." She muttered softly, this time too quietly for Rom to here.

"By the way Ram… You lost." Rom told her gently.

Ram immediately turned around with a rage filled face. "Tch, damn it! I forgot we were still playing! Do over!" She demanded angrily.

And so the twins began to play again, completely unaware of the danger their friends and beloved older sister had stumbled their way into.

* * *

A little further in the dungeon, Neptune and the others were carefully sneaking around. "For a holy place, it's sure got a lot of monsters in its dungeon." Vert complained.

"Thanks a bunch captain obvious." Noire muttered as the four looked at their surroundings: a completely black and iris red chamber, far too large to inspect in less than ten minutes. There were two hallways ahead with staircases on each side, one leading upward, and the other downward. All around the chamber were several monsters simply patrolling the open room. At the moment, CPUs used the only cover they had, a small unfinished wall near the entrance to conceal themselves. Already from the get go, this wasn't looking good.

"We've already been through two rooms." Blanc muttered.

"And still no boss key." Neptune added.

"Who cares? The only way out is forward, so we might as well keep going." Vert chimed.

"Yeah..." Noire said quietly.

And so the CPU quartet began to make their plan. A plan to figure out the safest way to get to the end of this tutorial dungeon alive that is.

* * *

Meanwhile, Nepgear and Uni had just entered the dungeon, looking around at the first room which was a large chamber covered in black and iris red lights. Nepgear took a shaky step forward. "W-Well, it's got a nice paint job." She said nervously.

"I don't really care for the paint job, but it's alright I guess." Uni replied.

_Creak_

"Ack! Uni!"

_CREAK_

"Y-Yeah?"

"_CREAAAAK_

"W-W-What was that?"

_SLAM!_

The two candidates shook with the loud sound. "I-I dunno. Look, maybe we should get out and wait for everyone to come ba-" Uni began, turning around slowly. Suddenly, a new detail caught her attention. "Hey wait a sec!" Uni exclaimed. She pulled against the door's entrance, pushed against it. Nothing. "N-Nepgear, help me out! The door's shut us in! It's stuck!" She yelled frantically.

Nepgear paled, immediately rushing to Uni's side to help her. None of their attempts to open the door succeeded. "O-Oh no. What do we do Uni?" Nepgear asked fearfully, pulling Uni to her side.

Uni blushed. "W-Well first you should get off me!" She answered. The two eyed the darkness before them. The only way out was to move forward through a dark, narrow hall way. Pulling her gun closer to her chest, she muttered, "'Cause it looks like we're gonna have to do this the hard way." She finished quietly.

**[Dungeon: The Forsaken Sanctuary]**

_[Truth Fragments Acquired: The Failed Purification & The Birth of Neptune]_

_[Extra Event Obtained: Nepgear's Nightmare]_

_[Nepgear Obtained Divine Saber]_

_[Uni Obtained Divine Desperado] _

_[Save?]_

* * *

**Next Time: Stage 3. The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part I: Pandora's Box**

* * *

Author's Notes:

Truth Fragments: Throughout this story you will hear a lot about "the truth" from many members of the original cast (the ones who haven't reincarnated anyway) and thus from many different point of views. Truth Fragments will allow the reader, should they desire it or not to see the truth as it actually happened from the Tome of Time's point of view. Remember though, the truth can at times be a blessing and at others, a curse.

Truth Fragments will be uploaded as separate chapters after the end of a boss fight and its respective arc's epilogue. I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter.


	6. Stage 3: The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part I

**Stage 3. The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part I: Pandora's Box**

Neptune, Noire, Vert, and Blanc have officially been wandering around this dungeon for well over an hour. They have been through several rooms, killed several monsters, and finally after several strifes managed to find another staircase, leading further up into a circular like pillar. "It seems as if we have found the focal point of this dungeon." Vert said aloud.

Noire sighed. "Good, this dungeon has already gotten really old for me," she said impatiently.

Blanc shook her head. "The puzzles here are irritating. I'm glad we're almost out," she complained.

Neptune on the other hand, was excited. "Psh, but this has been so much FUN! Look at how much we've leveled up here. Sides, I've been needing the workout," Neptune said merrily. The group glared at her. Half of the traps they fell into were definitely her fault. Neptune had accidentally set off several traps due to her clumsy nature. One of which involved a whole room filled with automatic machine guns. The group had lost almost half of their HP in that room, and had to spend their time healing up because of that little incident. Thank goodness their bodies were bullet proof or that could've ended badly. Finally noticing the glares she was getting, Neptune stupidly asked, "What's up guys? You look kinda mad."

Blanc felt a vein pop. "M-Mad? I'll show you mad you frickin' lunatic!" she yelled, producing her HDD axe.

Panicking, Vert summoned her drill spear and blocked Blanc's rash chop. "Calm down Blanc! We're almost out," she told her.

Blanc shook her head. "We wouldn't even BE in this mess if it weren't for her!" she retorted.

Neptune looked at her incredulously. "Bah! C'mon Blanc you totally wanted to check this place out too! This isn't totally on me," she said. Blanc growled at her, bringing her axe closer. For her own safety, Neptune took a worried step back.

Noire crossed her arms. It's not like everyone wasn't curious themselves. Still, she had to be the voice of reason. "While I will agree that this is totally Neptune's fault," she began, "we should concentrate on getting out of here instead of fighting with each other." she suggested.

While Neptune still didn't agree that this situation was her fault, she was incredibly pleased that someone defended her. "Yeah, what pigtails said! Let's keep going!" she urged.

Eventually after a lot of arguing, the group continued on, hoping for a way out of this nightmare of a dungeon.

* * *

Meanwhile, Nepgear and Uni were having their own problems. While the CPUs had taken the staircases leading upward, the candidates took the one leading downward. They were currently in a square room, a large gate blocking their path forward. On the left, there was a set of blue buttons and on the right a set of blue buttons. Next to each button, was a column of designs on the wall. The columns each either had one, two, three, or four of a particular design. The red side had dragons, while the blue side had wolves. "Wonder what we're supposed to do here," Nepgear said aloud.

Uni crossed her arms, eying the patterns. "Let's try stepping on the buttons closest to us. I'll take blue. You take red,'' she suggested.

Nepgear nodded, not having any better ideas. "Okay," she replied.

So, the two stepped on the ones closest to them. The patterns on the wall reflected three dragons on Nepgear's side, and two wolves on Uni's. A loud sound rang out in the area, sounding like the alarm that rang out when someone guessed wrong on a game show.

Nepgear tilted her head. "Funny, wonder what that was?" she asked herself quietly.

Suddenly, hordes of young fenrir materialized around them. Uni's side of the puzzle was glowing! Looking around bewildered, Uni produced her gun from her hammerspace. "Crap. Nepgear get ready!" she yelled.

Nepgear summoned her sword and hastily sliced through one of the approaching fenrir with a girlish shriek. "You don't have to tell me twice!" she yelled back as she attempted to fend off the beasts around her. There were now two on her side of the field, and three on Uni's. It was needless to say but, the girls had their work cut out for them.

* * *

On the other end of the dungeon, the older goddesses had found themselves in a strange, circular room. This appeared to be the final room in the upward direction of the dungeon. There was little in the room, but what firstly caught their attention was a treasure chest sitting in the middle of the room. It was a beautiful, black box decorated with gold lining. With how beautiful the box was it almost would have almost been a shame to open it. Neptune eyed the box curiously, barely resisting the urge to poke it. "Whoa, check the bling on this box!" she yelled with excitement. "Who says we open it and take the loot?" she asked goofily.

Noire eyed the box, thoroughly impressed with its overall appearance. Sadly, its beauty is exactly what deterred her. "Neptune, it would be dangerous to open something blatantly left out in the open like this," she warned.

Looking around, Blanc noticed a strange portrait on the wall. "Hey," she said quietly, "look at this," she muttered. Barely hearing her, the group turned to their right and noticed a large mural-like piece of artwork on the wall. Beneath it was a long wall of text, with a book sitting on a pedestal in front of it.

Looking at the mural, they noted a woman with long hair done in double braids, her hair white as snow and eyes shining gold. Her body was perhaps aged at her prime and a tad older, but certainly no younger. They also noted that the woman on the mural held a glistening white and gold sword. On the blade itself was a cross of sorts with four points held together by a magenta ring. The four points in question were in their respective colors: purple, black, green, and white if one were to look at them in clockwise order. Gazing upon it for a moment, Noire felt a strange pang in her chest. 'This woman looks so familiar,' Noire thought to herself quietly. 'Well, the hair and the eyes were a little different I think, but I swear this person resembles someone. Why can't I remember?' she asked herself confusedly.

Neptune was the most captivated by the piece of art. For some reason, this piece of artwork resonated with her. It left her awed by its splendor. "Well, she's definitely a looker," she joked.

"Leave it to you Neptune to call such a beautiful piece of artwork a 'looker,'" Vert complained.

"Honestly, you have no discipline at all Neptune," Noire whined.

"…Terrible," Blanc muttered with an exasperated tone.

Neptune looked at them incredulously, gaping at their words. "Wh-Whaddya mean guys? That's not fair to gang up on me and all," she replied. Looking back at the mural, Neptune said, "Still, doesn't this woman look familiar to you guys? Maybe she's like our mom or somethin'," she theorized.

Vert felt her palm collide with her face. "Neptune, CPU are made, not born," she reminded.

"Yeah, yeah, but it would still be kinda cool," Neptune argued. "Just think, maybe we were all separated at birth and we're actually sisters or somethin'!"she suggested enthusiastically.

Blanc shivered. "My blood crawls at the very thought of being related to an idiot like you," she muttered angrily.

Noire shook her head, "I'll pass on that notion," she said.

"As will I," Vert chimed.

Neptune sighed. 'Geesh, I just can't win today,' she thought to herself disappointedly. Then, her eyes finally wandered to the book. "Hey," she said, "let's go take a peek at the book!" she said cheerily.

Vert shook her head. "Absolutely not! Knowing an optional dungeon like this it contains spoilers poorly disguised as foreshadowing for the rest of the story!" she retorted.

Neptune shrugged her shoulders and rolled her eyes. "Party pooper," she whined. "Whatever. You wanna look with me Noire? Blanc?" she offered.

Blanc shook her head. She was not going to budge on the matter, and Neptune could see that.

Noire on the other hand, took several uneasy steps toward Neptune and eventually stood beside her. Neptune cooed and threw her arms around Noire, embracing her a tad more suggestively than she had meant to as she said, "Ohh I knew I could count on you pigtails!"

Noire blushed and immediately started to pry Neptune off of her person. "W-Whatever!" she yelled, "Let's just look in the book and see what it says," she told her.

As Vert watched alongside Blanc, Noire and Neptune curiously opened the book to find several pages worth of writing. Indeed, this book must have been over thousands of pages long! "It's a long read. Seems more like Histy's kinda book," Neptune muttered.

Noire began to read some of the pages aloud, "Woe to the great goddess, separated into five by the dark one. Celestia is the place that transcends all of time and space, and it is here that we write in hopes of leaving this message to the chosen ones of the next generation: become one once more. Only then will you truly end the darkness known as Arfoire," it read.

They were all silent. No one really knew what to make of the page. "Arfoire? What's that?" Neptune asked.

Noire sighed. "That's the Deity of Sin Neptune," she reminded.

Neptune nodded. "Oh right, so that means she's probably the final boss of this game huh?" she asked.

"I told you there were spoilers in there," Vert grumbled.

"She's a stubborn one," Blanc muttered.

Neptune crossed her arms, "But there were five protagonists in that story, so we're one short!" she said loudly.

"I highly doubt this refers to us Neptune," Blanc muttered.

"There are few people with access to Celestia. If it wasn't directed at the current CPU, then who was this written for?" Vert asked the group curiously. Of course, no one really had an answer.

That was when Neptune came up with a theory. "See guys, this totally goes with what I said! We're all probably part of some awesome super goddess and we all combine to form our true self with which we'll fight Arfy in a huge, epic battle for the world!" she theorized heartily.

Noire shook her head. "No, no, no, that can't be right. If that were the case, we're one short," she reminded.

"That just means we have to look for her and unlock her for the party," Neptune countered.

Vert crossed her arms and leaned against a pillar. "Neptune, there are only four landmasses. I highly doubt we'll be finding a fifth CPU. If there were one, what color would she be?" she asked.

"Red obviously," Neptune replied matter-of-factly, "red's usually part of the center piece for the giant robot fusion thingy!" she explained.

Blanc held her head with frustration. "This is giving me a headache, let's just get out of here," she mumbled angrily.

Vert sighed. "That is an excellent idea Blanc, but do you see any ways out of here?" she asked.

"I bet there's a teleportation thingy in the box," Neptune theorized.

"Yeah, but with our luck the boss monster's in there too," Noire added.

"And you said I was breaking the fourth wall," Neptune teased.

Noire flushed, "A-Anyway, who's gonna open the box and see what's inside?" she asked.

Everyone looked at each other, and eventually all of the gazes fell unto Neptune. Feeling the intense stare of her fellow CPU she immediately backed away from them. "U-Uh let's be rational about this now!" she begged, "If it weren't for me we wouldn't have gone on this epic adventure and leveled up so much so-"

"So you should open the box," Blanc interjected, "because this is definitely all your fault," she said.

"Couldn't have said it any better myself," Vert said.

Noire said nothing, leaving Neptune to shakily stroll up to the box. "Well, here goes nothing!" she said. She couldn't have known. None of them could have known at the time, but what they were about to do would bring about irrevocable change to their lives.

* * *

While that was going on, Nepgear and Uni had finally managed to defeat all of the monsters in the large panel room they were in earlier. Eventually, they discovered that the combination was in order from the least number of monster pictures to the greatest on their respective sides. Having gotten past that room, they made their way into a large hallway beneath the tower. Uni assumed that they were actually underground. "This hallway is really creepy," Nepgear complained.

Where they were now was a large corridor-like hallway with greying marble on either side. They were in a dark, gloomy tunnel and the nerve-wracking lack of an end to the darkness was finally starting to get on Nepgear's nerves. "What's a matter? You scared Nepgear?" Uni teased.

Nepgear, not understanding Uni's words to be insults clung to the shorter girl. She threw her arms around her and clumsily fell over, causing them both to fall flat onto their bottoms. Nepgear was still on top of Uni, who in the darkness was blushing madly. "Wh-What are you doing?" she asked quietly.

"I'm scared!" Nepgear cried, "I can hear a weird voice in the hallway and it's really freaking me out! Can't you hear it?" she explained hysterically.

Uni raised an eyebrow and carefully stood up with Nepgear. "You can hear something?" Uni asked steadily.

Nepgear sniffled, wiping a tear from her eye. "I can hear a voice in the walls of this tunnel. It gets louder as we go along this path. It keeps saying, 'release me,'" she told her. "Uni I'm scared!" she cried.

Uni rolled her eyes and patted the crybaby girl's head. "It's okay. I dunno how, but we'll find a way outta here, and if some creep shows up I'll blast him!" she told her, hoping to calm the girl's nerves.

Nepgear's features brightened considerably as her embrace tightened around the girl. "Oh thank you so much Uni! I love you!" she exclaimed.

Uni, unprepared for the rather blunt statement was left completely speechless. Her face began to burn with her countenance red as a tomato. "I-I uh, um, w-what are you saying?" she finally yelled, forcing herself out of Nepgear's grip. "L-Let's just go," she said to the lilac-haired girl.

Nepgear nodded, following Uni closely from behind. "O-Okay Uni. Sorry, I said something weird," Nepgear said apologetically.

Uni shook her head, trying to dismiss the barrage of thoughts that were tainting her mind. "I-It's fine. Don't apologize…" Uni said to her, "It felt sorta good to hear," she muttered.

Nepgear completely missed the exact wording, but she knew that Uni had said something after, "don't apologize." She wanted to know. "What did you say Uni?" she asked curiously.

"Nothing," Uni replied, "Let's keeping going. I think I can see a light up ahead," she told her. Sure enough, they did come across a light. They soon found themselves in a beautiful, white chamber. In the center of the room was a stack of platforms, eventually in the center of the third being a pedestal with a sword lodged within it. The blade was a beautiful white, the hilt gold and blue. It just caught their attention and stunned them. They approached it; making their way to the platform when suddenly, Nepgear felt a burning sensation in her abdomen, keeling over from the pain.

"Ack- agh! It hurts!" Nepgear exclaimed as she writhed in pain. On the ground she felt her body twist in ways it shouldn't as she tried to cope with the pain.

Alarmed by Nepgear's sudden pain-spasm Uni immediately kneeled to her side. "What's wrong Nepgear? You ok?" she asked frantically.

Nepgear couldn't say anything through the pain, screaming and writhing as the room filled with an eerie, crimson light.

"You should have never come here, foolish CPU candidate," a voice told them darkly.

Through her screaming, Nepgear let out one final gasp as she fell unconscious. The room's light suddenly focused towards the sword, catching Uni's attention as she watched the beautiful blade twist into a dark blade with a crossguard seemingly made out of magenta vines. "Nepgear!" she yelled, trying to rouse her. Nothing. Her body was pale, cold, lifeless. Uni shook her head, unwilling to believe what she was seeing. "Nepgear! C'mon this isn't the time to take a nap! NEPGEAR!" she yelled frantically. Unfortunately for Uni, Nepgear was currently off on a journey, a journey down memory lane…

* * *

Back in the final room of the upper levels where the CPU stood, Neptune slowly opened the black chest. Inside of it was a small, blackish-purple crystal with a power button symbol on it. Interested in it, Neptune immediately took it out of its container and began to examine the object with intense interest. "Go figure, we came here for a small key item," she muttered, pocketing the item. Not too long after, she felt a strange sensation in her body. "Kuh, agh!" she yelled in pain. Not too long after, she was on the ground, a strange steam erupting from her body.

Noire immediately ran to her, kneeling beside her. "You ok?" she asked frantically.

Vert immediately moved Noire out of her way to kneel beside Neptune. She began to cast heal, but nothing was happening. "Perhaps she overheated," she suggested.

Neptune coughed, curling into a ball before finally managing to stand half-way up. "S-Something's going on with my body! I-I feel all weird and stuff!" she yelled fearfully.

Not sure of what to do, the CPU could only watch in horror as Neptune attempted to fend off the steam and ease the pain that was coursing through her body. Eventually, a large pillar of light erupted from her body. What emerged from it was not Neptune, but a woman who was the spitting image of the woman in the portrait. The only differences were her purple hair, and her glistening, blue eyes.

The three CPU stared at their comrade, completely unsure of what they had just witnessed. All that they could come up with was that this new form must be Neptune's HDD.

The three were speechless with the exception of Blanc who had only two words to say the moment, "Holy shit."

_[Neptune Acquired HDD: Purple Heart]_

_[Truth Fragment Obtained: The Silver Goddess]_

_[Extra Event Obtained: Passing the Time]_

_[Neptune Obtained: Celestial Breaker]_

_[Neptune, Noire, Blanc, and Vert have Obtained: Guardian Force]_

* * *

**Next Time: Stage 4. The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part II: Awakening**

* * *

Author's Notes:

I live again! Forgive the absence everyone, I got buried under my homework and am updating far later than I had anticipated. I will attempt to pump out more chapters in advance before school starts back up again. Regardless, I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter.


	7. Stage 4: The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part II

**Stage 4. The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part II: Awakening **

The woman before the remaining three CPU immediately threw herself into a standing position. She immediately began to check herself over: her hands, her arms, her body. _I-I'm alive again? _she thought to herself confusedly.

Looking at Noire, Vert, and Blanc, she took a moment re-familiarize herself with their faces. "Hm, it seems there were no complications," she muttered to herself.

Noire eyed the woman curiously. _If that was really Neptune, she would have flipped out over her bust. _she thought to herself quietly. She continued to eye the mysterious woman's behavior, thinking, _but if that's not Neptune… Who is that? _

The woman turned her attention to the mural in front of them, her eyes focused on it intently. The CPU looked down at her right hand and eventually closed her eyes.

She returned her gaze to the three other CPU, her stance dignified and confident. "We should leave," she suggested. Her voice sounded like Neptune's, but it was noticeably deeper.

The three stared at her dumbfounded, but agreed with her idea and made preparations to leave until a monstrous shriek caused all four of them to assume their battle positions.

"Curses, I was hoping we'd be able to leave before it started up again," the mysterious CPU muttered.

Hearing this, Noire, in her frustration asked, "Who are you?"

The CPU turned to her and answered, "My name is Purple Heart, the other side of the one who isn't supposed to exist."

Noire raised an eyebrow. "'The one who isn't supposed to exist?'" she repeated confusedly.

She wanted to ask more questions, but the shriek sounded again, forcing all of them into a guard-stance. "What the hell is that noise?" Blanc yelled in an irritated voice.

Purple Heart pointed to the ground ahead of them. "That," she answered simply.

They all turned their attention to the dark mass they had seen prior to entering this forbidden tower. The only strange thing was that this time, it was taking form. They watched in horror as it took the form of a human-looking male with wild, black hair that reached half-way down his back. His eyes were a shade of red similar to Noire's.

What really stuck out to them as being in-human though were his demon horns; the pair of horns that protruded from his head facing downward. His eyes were not those of a wild monster though. They were dejected, almost pitying. "I see you four failed to take my warning," the young demon-man said to them sadly.

Noire was the first to argue. "Hmph, and to think all we were scared of was a kid with horns! You don't look so tough!" she yelled back.

"I don't think it was a good idea to admit that we were scared," Vert muttered.

In a blinding flash, the young demon was kneeled before Noire, his newly-summoned sword pointed rested right beside her neck in a slicing position. "You must learn to never underestimate your opponents. This, milady, will get you killed," he warned.

Noire's eyes narrowed angrily as she tried to take a step backward and return the favor, but he was already back where he was originally standing. "Tch, cocky brat," she murmured.

Purple Heart eyed him for a moment. "Are you the boss monster of this area?" she asked calmly.

The demon eyed her, and then moved his gaze to the portrait. "I'm surprised a thief and faker would have to ask that," he answered cryptically.

Purple Heart raised an eyebrow. _Faker? _she mentally repeated.

Stabbing his sword into the marble beneath them, the demon said, "I am Alastor, the guardian phantom of Celestia." He pointed his blade at the four girls, his eyes menacing. "I take it you four are the current CPU?" he asked.

They nodded to him, and once more he turned to the portrait on the wall. "My master, Lady Neptune, left me to guard this land prior to her demise at the hands of that _thing,_" he explained angrily. "I must ask you to return what you acquired from that box," he told Purple Heart.

Purple Heart shook her head. "I would if I could, but I have no clue as to how to shut this transformation off," she explained.

Noire crossed her arms. "And what do you mean _Lady_ Neptune? Neptune is right here buddy," she said pointing at Purple Heart, "She's not dead."

"YOU LIE!" The demon roared angrily, brandishing his sword at them. "I saw her worn down in battle until she was split into five by her own mother and that accursed tome!" he yelled.

Blanc looked around, carefully observing their situation. _The book said there were five pieces, but there are only five CPU. Yet, this lady of his shares her name with Neptune, who also happens to look like his lady,_ she thought to herself quietly. Looking around, an idea struck her.

"I hope you have no intentions of trying to kill us Alastor," she said cockily. A dark smile was smeared onto her face.

Alastor growled at her. "Enough games! What makes you think I shouldn't?"

Blanc grinned deviously. "Because we are four of the five pieces of your former master dumbass!" she said loudly.

Alastor stared at her blankly, eyeing them closely. _It's true that they do look like four of the five brats she split up into that day, _he thought to himself. Looking at Purple Heart, his frown slowly transformed into a maddened grin.

"Fine, I will let you leave with my master's power under one condition," he told them. Pointing at the four, he said, "You four have to manage to defeat me. If you win, that will be proof enough that you four are indeed fragments of my master."

Noire grinned ear-to-ear. "Oh-ho, that's not such a difficult request," she said cheerfully.

Vert readied herself to transform. "You will regret your decision!" she warned.

Blanc was in position, her hammer slowly transforming into an axe. "I'm gonna smash you!" she yelled wildly.

Purple Heart eyed the portrait, and returned her gaze to the demon. What he said still perplexed her. "_The master's power?"_ she mentally repeated. Something wasn't right here, and she knew that whatever it was, it may just prove fatal if they weren't careful.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the basement, Uni was in the middle of her own problem. Alastor zoomed about the circular-shaped room and would constantly lunge for her, causing her to unleash a blast from her assault-rifle that almost constantly missed him, but kept him away from his current target: a limp Nepgear.

"Damn it! He's too fast!" Uni yelled in frustration.

Nepgear on the other hand, was still unconscious, unaware of her friend's desperate struggle.

Alastor produced a claw of energy that collided with Uni's assault rifle. "You should allow me to kill her! This girl is destined to destroy us all!" he yelled. Uni leapt back to Nepgear's side and fired off three rounds. All of those shots missed their mark, but managed to put distance between the demon and the two CPU candidates.

"You remember nothing little girl, but she will be the death of your precious big sister if you allow her to live!" he warned.

Uni's eyes narrowed as she charged her assault rifle with magical energy. "SHUT UP!" she yelled angrily as she unleashed a large stream of energy. This time, she managed to hit him and send him flying through one of the pillars in the chamber.

Kneeling beside Nepgear she shouted, "Nepgear! Please you have to get up! NEPGEAR!"

* * *

Nepgear however was lost in a world long forgotten. She was taking a stroll within the confines of her soul, within the realm of long forgotten memories.

Nepgear wandered through the broken streets of a damaged Leanbox. She shivering with fright as she walked aimlessly through the darkened streets. A black cloud hung over the sky. She was terrified of the darkness and gloom around her. At last, she finally caught sight of something- blood.

She ran towards the source, only to find another Nepgear standing beside Neptune over a badly beaten Vert. Blood was leaking from Vert's head and chest. She was badly wounded and it was clear that she wouldn't make it. Vert was saying something to them, but the current Nepgear could not hear what she was saying.

Her eyes widened in horror as she realized what the other Nepgear intended to do. That Nepgear, with reluctant tears in her eyes raised the sword. The present Nepgear felt tears fill her eyes when she realized the other Neptune had no intentions of stopping her. "Stop…" she said softly in horror.

She winced as the other Nepgear's scream echoed through the town as she plunged the sword into Vert's body. The sickening sound of a bone braking and blood splashing onto the ground echoed through the streets. The current Nepgear could only watch in horror as Vert burst into data and was absorbed into the sword.

The current Nepgear felt herself waddle off balance. She barely caught herself from falling. Her tears were falling at full force and her mind in shambles. "NOOOOOOOO!" she screamed in horror. With that, she whited out.

* * *

Within the real world, a tower of crimson energy burst forth from Nepgear's limp body. Uni immediately ceased all action, and Alastor too ceased his attacks to watch as Nepgear floated into the air. An ominous air filled the chamber as she gracefully fell before the Gehaburn.

"Oh no…" Alastor said softly as Nepgear gripped the accursed blade.

Uni, confused by Nepgear's actions soon noticed that Nepgear's eyes were still closed. It was almost as if she were being controlled like a puppet. "Nepgear stop! Open your eyes, it's me, Uni!" she begged.

"It's too late for your friend now," Alastor told her sadly.

Uni turned to him, confusion covering her face. "What?" she asked softly.

"The darkness within her has allowed the Gehaburn to possess her as its new host," he explained.

Uni ran towards the pedestal, but was stopped by an invisible barrier. Helpless to stop what was occurring before her, she fell to her knees. "No, Nepgear," she pleaded softly, "You have to wake up! Please! I'M BEGGING YOU DAMMIT! WAKE UP!" she yelled.

Nepgear suddenly opened her eyes. Her hands were still on the sword. "Huh?" she said to herself confusedly. Looking down at the sword, she released her grip from it in horror when she realized that it was the same sword the other Nepgear had used to kill Vert.

Without warning, Uni immediately dashed to Nepgear's side, embracing her strongly. "Don't you ever do that again!" Uni yelled angrily. "You hear me Nepgear?"

Nepgear wasn't exactly sure what she had done to worry Uni so greatly, but she nodded anyway and returned the girl's embrace.

Alastor crossed his arms. _She resisted the sword's pull? _he thought to himself confusedly. Grinning he said, "Fine, you can leave."

Uni turned to him and asked, "What?"

Alastor shook his head as a shining, blue portal appeared beside him. "You managed to stop your friend from being possessed by that sword. You should leave before it tries to pull her in again. Next time, you might not be so lucky," he explained.

Uni didn't quite understand his explanation, but she took his way out with gratitude. She and Nepgear immediately walked towards and stepped into the blue portal, gazing about in wonder when they were incased in a blue crystal.

The crystal began to shine and suddenly disappeared, leaving Alastor alone in the Gehaburn's chamber. "My work here is done," he muttered quietly. The demon's body became black mist and quietly returned to the accursed sword from whence it came.

* * *

On the upper floor, the older CPU were having troubles of their own. Blanc charged the demon with her axe, going for a slice to his side. The demon grinned at her and stopped her axe with a single hand. "Nice try," he said cockily as he fired a blast of red-colored energy at the blue-haired CPU.

With a grunt of pain the young CPU was sent flying into a wall, which she crashed into with incredible force. A loud _BOOM! _sounded through the chamber as Blanc fell to the ground.

"BLANC!" Vert yelled worriedly as she attempted to spear the demon with her drill spear. The demon's eyes remained trained on her weapon, but his plan of defense was eventually proven ineffective when Purple Heart appeared behind him and swung her katana.

Alastor barely managed to leap over the two weapons and out of harm's way. _It's just like the master's Army of One ability. It's a real pain to fight four of them,_ he mentally complained.

Looking at Purple Heart, he made use of his speed and teleported behind her. "But if that's the case," he muttered quietly, raising a newly-summoned dagger. "Then all I have to do is kill one of you to make this easier!" he yelled crazily as drove his dagger toward Purple Heart's back.

He was about to stab her, Purple Heart was in the middle of momentum while floating. She had no way to dodge, when the most shocking of things happened.

_STAB! CRACK! SPLASH! _The most sickening of sounds pierced the girls' ears. They all looked towards the source of the sound to find that Noire in her transformed state had sped behind Purple Heart and had taken the blow to her abdomen.

A ball of fire was building in Noire's hand as she coughed up a small amount of blood. "Eat this!" she yelled as she forced the dagger out of her abdomen. A stream of fire emerged from her hand, and with its devastating force, it sent Alastor flying into a wall with a loud _CRASH! _

Purple Heart immediately turned around and cradled the white-haired goddess in her arms. "Noire!" she yelled worriedly.

Noire eyed her and with newfound closeness peered into the girl's glistening, blue eyes. Cupping her face, Noire muttered, "I knew it, you're definitely not Neptune," she told the taller girl with her usual cocky voice. She coughed and lurched as she coughed up another round of blood.

Purple Heart did her best to keep composure, even with her shaking hands. "How did you figure it out?" she asked curiously.

Noire giggled. "You don't even talk like her for starters," she answered honestly. Noire grimaced when she realized that her HP was still dropping.

Purple Heart remained motionless, unsure of how to react. Within her, another interaction was occurring.

* * *

Neptune woke up in a plain space, white as far as the eyes could see. "Wh-Where am I? Oh man did I kick the bucket! No way! I don't wanna die yet!"

"That's not it. You're just conscious within the realm in your soul. It's a first though I'll admit. Usually, you're never conscious here when I take over," a voice similar to hers explained.

Neptune leapt at the sudden entrance of a new voice and looked behind her to find a woman resembling Purple Heart, but with the exact appearance of the woman in the portrait.

"Okay, I guess I should start listening to Noire and lay off the cookies before bed," Neptune said to herself dejectedly.

"I can assure you that this is no dream and unless you help me, your friends are going to die," the woman told her.

Neptune gasped in horror as a display-screen appeared and relayed to her the image of a dying Noire. "No way, Noire, how did this happen?" she yelled.

The woman shook her head and assumed the appearance of Purple Heart. "We don't have much time. I need to know, do you honestly not recognize me?" she asked.

Neptune gazed at her, until finally realizing it. "You're my CPU form aren't you? Purple Heart!"

The taller CPU nodded. "Usually, in another time, I would assume partial control of your body and personality when you assumed HDD, but right now I need to ask something greater of you," she told the shorter CPU.

Neptune tilted her head before saying goofily, "My body's not for sale. Besides, you're hot enough to score anyone you want."

The taller CPU shook her head with a sigh. "Do you want to save Noire or not?" she asked seriously.

Neptune stopped her clowning and immediately looked away. "I can do that?" she asked with a sliver of hope.

Purple Heart nodded and returned to resembling the goddess in the portrait. Embracing the younger-looking CPU, she said, "Just leave it to me," she told her quietly.

Neptune nodded. "Okay, but," she paused, "make sure to beat up whoever did this to her!" she said seriously.

Purple Heart was taken aback, but smiled anyway and nodded. "You bet," she replied.

* * *

Returning once more to the surface, she told Noire, "Sorry, I had to get the admin-privileges."

Noire's face was one of half-confusion and half-twisted-in-pain. She was confused by the taller CPU's words.

Purple Heart reached a hand over the girl, whispering, "This'll feel a bit weird, but I promise it'll only be for a little while." Purple Heart's hand began to glow pure white as she a strange gate opened over Noire's naval.

Noire's eyes widened with surprise as Purple Heart plunged her right arm into the gate, causing the CPU to scream in pain. The other two CPU watched in horror as Noire burst into silvery-white flames and surrounded Purple Heart.

Alastor's eyes widened with surprise. "No way!" he shouted.

As the flames died down, a single CPU stood where Noire and Purple Heart once stood. She held Purple Heart's appearance, but she had Noire's silvery-white hair. Her eyes were closed, as if deep in concentration.

Alastor growled at them. "Enough of your tricks! Where are the two CPU?"

The woman opened her eyes, revealing Purple Heart's glistening, blue eyes. "Right here!" she yelled, her voice slightly electronic and mixed between Noire's and Purple Heart's.

The other two CPU stared agape at what had just transpired: Neptune had absorbed Noire and somehow, the two have fused together! "What the hell just happened?" Blanc asked blankly.

Vert shook her head. "Don't ask me. I'm just as confused as you are," she answered.

Purple Heart, now armed with Noire's power, summoned Noire's two-bladed sword, and her own katana. Her eyes were fierce, and the amazing amount of energy gathered around her body was nothing short of terrifying. "Ready for round two?"

_[Neptune Obtained Noire's Goddess Fragment!]_

_[Neptune Acquired the C-Trans: Noire]_

_[Noire Acquired the C-Trans: Neptune]_

_[Neptune can now use Hard-Drive-Merge with Noire]_

_[Noire can now use Hard-Drive-Merge with Neptune]_

_[Save?]_

* * *

**Next Time: The Forsaken Sanctuary Part III: The Goddess of Silver **


	8. Stage 5: The Goddess of Silver

**Stage 5. The Forsaken Sanctuary, Part III: The Goddess of Silver **

_[Neptune Acquired: Celestial Buster]_

_[Neptune Acquired: Nep Buster]_

_[Noire Acquired: Celestial Buster]_

_[Noire Acquired: Photon Buster] _

_[Noire Acquired: Photon Slayer]_

Purple Heart wasted no time in disappearing and reappearing before Alastor with her swords at the ready. She swiftly swung down onto the demon, who barely managed to block her attack.

Alastor grunted, but quickly returned her attack with a counter slice. His eyes widened in horror when he realized that his attack had only managed to halt her sword. In fact, her sword was progressively closing in on his shoulder with each passing second.

Purple Heart's now silvery-white hair glittered in the dimly-lit room as her sparks flew from her sword. Shifting her footing, Purple Heart continued her relentless push, eventually getting the sword to loom right above his shoulder.

Alastor finally managed to slice to the side and narrowly managed to escape Purple Heart's attack. Had he not escaped in time, she would have easily removed his arm.

Purple Heart leapt behind him and managed to land a blow on his back. A stream of blood gushed out from the wound.

"Gah!" Alastor yelped. He immediately took to spinning on his heel and unleashed a heavy blow onto her katana.

Purple Heart cringed, but quickly extended the arm that was holding Noire's sword. When she did so, the small cylinder between the two blades on the sword slightly expanded and eventually formed the barrel of a cannon. She grinned as the barrel began to shine with energy.

Alastor's face twisted into one of annoyance. "I forgot, that sword's second power is-"

He didn't get to finish his sentence. While his arm was preoccupied with attempting to land a hit on Purple Heart, she swiftly placed the barrel of the newly-formed swordcannon in front of Alastor's abdomen and pulled the trigger that appeared on the handle.

Alastor screamed in agony as a stream of electrified, stardust-covered energy sent him sailing towards the ceiling of the room and eventually caused him to crash against it.

Vert and Blanc watched with astonishment. "When did she get that upgrade?" Vert asked Blanc curiously.

"Hell if I know," Blanc answered irately. Looking up at Alastor, she grinned to herself and summoned her axe. "But what I do know is that that cheeky bastard deserves a little payback," she muttered deviously.

Vert grinned as she summoned her drill spear. "I agree, let's join her shall we?" she replied in agreement.

The two immediately sped towards Alastor, who was still imbedded in the ceiling. Seeing their swiftly approaching figures, he managed to dodge their attack; however, he was unsuccessful in dodging Purple Heart's second blast of energy. This time he was sent flying into the wall with a loud _CRASH_!

Blanc and Vert hovered over to Purple Heart, who hadn't taken her eyes off of Alastor for even a second. "Got any more tricks you haven't told us about?" Vert asked teasingly.

Purple Heart eyed the two with a hint of interest before placing her hands over their abdomens. "Not really," she muttered as the two began to light flame.

Blanc's and Vert's eyes widened with shock and fear as Purple Heart's hands reached into their bodies. Blanc attempted to struggle and turned to Vert for assistance, but soon noted that Vert had already accepted her fate. Seeing this, Blanc nodded and did the same. When they finally burst into flame, their blue and green flames covered Purple Heart's body.

Alastor watched the spectacle from where he was embedded in the wall and muttered, "Well I'll be damned."

When she remerged from the flames, Purple Heart's eyes were now gold in color and her suit was glowing with a golden light. Purple Heart's katana's color scheme changed from black and purple to white and gold respectively. The pattern scene in the mural engraved itself onto the sword. She was the spitting image of the woman in the mural.

_[Neptune Acquired Vert's Goddess Fragment]_

_[Neptune Obtained Blanc's Goddess Fragment]_

_[Neptune Acquired C-Trans: Vert]_

_[Vert Acquired C-Trans: Neptune]_

_[Neptune Acquired C-Trans: Blanc]_

_[Blanc Acquired C-Trans: Neptune] _

_[Neptune can now use Hard-Drive-Merge with Vert]_

_[Vert can now use Hard-Drive-Merge with Neptune]_

_[Neptune can now use Hard-Drive-Merge with Blanc]_

_[Blanc can now use Hard-Drive Merge with Neptune]_

Looking down at Alastor, she asked, "Are you going to stay there all day, or are we going to settle this?"

Alastor shook his head and descended to the floor. He clenched a fist before muttering, "I have a physical body again. I should make use of that."

Overhearing his monologue, Purple Heart raised an eyebrow and descended toward him. "What?"

A black and red vortex suddenly appeared over their heads. Crimson bolts of lightning shot from it, striking random points on the ground below. Suddenly, from within the darkness the Gehaburn appeared before Alastor. He took hold of it, his crimson eyes trained on Purple Heart. "This is only a copy, but it should be strong enough to deal with you," he said with a stoic voice.

Purple Heart readied her swords and lunged for the demon, but this time she was met half-way. "What the?"

"My speed is near doubled with this equipped," he muttered darkly. He disappeared, appearing behind her and barely managing to graze her body suit, disappearing and once again reappearing. He continued this pattern for several strikes. There were too many attacks to count and Purple Heart was having a hard time keeping up.

She cringed as a gigantic barrier of golden energy burst forth from her body and sent Alastor flying a distance away from her. This time, he managed to stop himself from crashing into anything.

Purple Heart quickly dispersed her two weapons and this time summoned Blanc's axe and began to spin in circles with it. The axe began to enlarge with each passing cycle until it became a gigantic spinning blade of death. With her remaining arm, she summoned Vert's drill spear and made it spin in reverse, creating a vortex that was sucking any loose material and debris into the spinning drill and demolishing it.

Alastor attempted to hold onto what little footing he had before the vortex began to draw him towards the drill spear. He looked down to see Purple Heart continuing to spin the axe, while somehow keeping the drill spear steady. Glaring down at her he created a ball of fire and flung it down towards her, only to note that the flames got sucked into the drill spear.

Having noticed that her weapon was on fire, Purple Heart dispersed her weapons and leapt a distance from her opponent. Summoning her swords, Purple Heart kept her gaze trained on the demon.

Alastor gaped as a gigantic "N" appeared beneath her. She lunged at him and began to slice him multiple times. _Neptune Breaker huh? _he thought to himself quietly. How wrong he was.

Just when the final two blows should be struck, she hovered in the air and gathered a large amount of energy with her sword. Gripping the katana and the swordcannon, she swung them both and unleashed a huge x-shaped blade of magical energy that raced toward Alastor and engulfed him completely.

Alastor screamed in pain as the blast erupted around him. A pillar of golden light shot forth from the ceiling, broke through it, and continued on into the boundless sky.

**[Victory!] **

**[Neptune Level Up! Level 12]**

**[Noire Level Up! Level 11]**

**[Blanc Level Up! Level 11]**

**[Vert Level Up! Level 13] **

* * *

Histoire awoke with a start in a cold sweat. She panted heavily as she floated into the air. _That was a horrible dream, _she thought to herself quietly. Looking towards the tower where the Gehaburn lay, she sighed to herself.

_I should have never programmed that sword into this world from that other Gamindustri, _she thought to herself sadly. Suddenly, a golden pillar of light shot forth from the tower with a loud, _BOOM, _and continued on into the sky. Histoire gasped and floated a few paces backward. "No," she muttered in disbelief.

The small fairy immediately took to checking all of the girls' rooms, but found that only Rom and Ram were where they should be. _This isn't good! _she thought to herself worriedly. Without a moment's delay, she sped towards the tower of the Gehaburn.

* * *

Alastor lay on the ground, writhing in pain. Sparks of gold-colored electricity flew off of the demon. Purple Heart stood before him, blades at the ready. "Talk, why did you attack us?" Purple Heart asked seriously.

Alastor shook his head. "You wouldn't understand. I highly doubt you have all of your past memories. Go, get out of here. You need to leave before The Dark One arrives," Alastor answered cryptically.

Purple Heart raised an eyebrow. "Wait, weren't you just trying to kill me? Why are you trying to help us now, and what is this about 'past memories' and 'The Dark One?'" Purple Heart asked curiously.

Alastor shook his head. "You never could let things go, I'm sorry things turned out this way, Neptune. If things had gone better, maybe you wouldn't have died back then," he said to her sadly.

Purple Heart raised an eyebrow. There was more than one thing wrong with what Alastor had just said. The first was that he was being completely friendly, a huge change from his initially hostile behavior. The second was that his voice was now that of a woman's.

Alastor held his head and groaned. "The curse is probably weakening from my lack of energy. I'll revert to my true form for a short time. I highly doubt you'll recognize me though," he told her cryptically.

"Curse? What are you talking about?" Purple Heart asked.

Alastor didn't answer and instead chose to stare at the hole in the ceiling. Without a word, he rose to his feet and staggered toward the goddess. A violent flash of light blinded her, and when it faded a boy no longer stood before her. What stood before her was a girl with long, black hair and dazzling, silver eyes.

The woman struggled to remain standing and firmly gripped her shoulder. "I'm sorry I put you through that Neptune. The curse of the will of the Gehaburn occasionally affects my sanity," she said quietly.

Purple Heart stood there dumbfounded as four separate minds tried to process what had just occurred within her.

* * *

Blanc, Vert, Noire, and Neptune all stood alongside Purple Heart and viewed the image before them. "He, she, he genderbent into a girl!" Neptune shouted in a bewildered voice.

Neptune wasn't the only one confused and completely bewildered by the sudden turn of events.

"This isn't the manga about the kid who genderbends when hot water's poured on him!" Blanc shouted confusedly.

Vert crossed her arms. "Indeed, but I must admit that she's quite stunning," she said more to herself than to the others.

Noire however had a different train of thought. "Maybe I'm the only one who noticed, but did anyone notice that her color scheme is the exact opposite of Purple Heart's?" she asked curiously.

Vert shrugged. "It's probably some cheap attempt at yin and yang," she hypothesized offhandedly.

"Perhaps her power is the opposite of our own," Blanc theorized.

Turning to Purple Heart, Neptune asked, "Do you know her bigger me?"

Purple Heart shook her head with a sigh. "Must you call me that? My name is Purple Heart. To answer your question though, no, I don't know her," answered the taller goddess.

Neptune shook her head. "Then what do you want me to call you? Partner? Other me? Oh or better yet, Ate-"

"Okay you're getting way too carried away over there!" Noire shouted, interrupting Neptune's joke.

Vert nodded. "She's right Neptune. This is a serious problem," she reminded.

Blanc growled. "Like hell it is! Forget about the chick, how do we get out of here?" she yelled.

Purple Heart sighed and shook her head. "You're always like that, ever-so temperamental," she said amused.

Blanc turned to her, a threatening gleam in her eyes. "What did you say?" she spat. Glaring at the taller goddess's bust, she yelled, "Just because yours are almost as big as Thunder Tit's!"

Vert covered her bosom and yelled, "Must you always call me that?"

Just as Blanc was about to summon her hammer, the four CPU began to become transparent. Neptune began to run in circles in a panic. "Nooooo! I don't wanna kick the bucket yet!" she yelled fearfully.

"Be calm Neptune. I'm just returning control of your body over to you. The others will return to having their own bodies momentarily," Purple Heart told her gently.

Neptune turned to face her. "Will we ever talk again? If not, I totally need your number," Neptune asked her half-seriously, half-goofily.

Purple Heart smiled. "When you want to talk to me, just call for me. Do so in your head though. You'll worry the others if you start talking to yourself aloud," she replied.

Neptune smiled as her body finally disappeared. Her final words rang out throughout the plain, white space, "Coolio! Talk to ya soon!"

* * *

Neptune and the girls awoke in their human forms face to face with the girl before them. Out of her HDD form, this girl towered over Neptune. "So that's what happened," the girl muttered quietly.

Noire was the first to interrogate her. "Who are you? Why were you a guy? And WHY did you attack us?" she asked aggressively.

The girl nodded to her. "My name's Umbra," she answered quietly. She cringed, shaking her head. "I don't have much time. I won't be able to stay as my true self for much longer, so I'll try to explain as fast as I can-"

"Stop right there. Who are you?" Histoire's voice asked seriously.

Umbra immediately turned to face the small fairy. "Histore."

Histoire turned to face the four goddesses, who in turn looked away. "May I ask what led you four to travel into this tower?" she asked with exasperation.

"We went to check this place out, but when Neptune opened the door a creepy voice told us to 'leave while [we] still [could],' and we sort of just strolled in and got locked in shortly after," Vert explained quickly.

Histoire quickly floated over to the goddesses and embraced them. "Thank goodness you four are alright," she said with relief. Turning her gaze to Umbra, she asked, "How do you know my name? Who are you?"

Umbra raised an eyebrow. "I'm Umbra, but you might know me as the Will of the Gehaburn. I think the energy supplying the curse ran out after my fight with them; as a result, I'll be in my true form for a little while," she answered with a hint of confusion.

"Is something wrong?" Histoire asked curiously.

"I have about a minute left, so if you really don't remember me I should probably tell you everything I know," answered Umbra. Looking towards the four, she told Histoire, "I don't know what happened exactly, but they managed to return to their original state."

Histoire raised an eyebrow. "Original state? What are you talking about?" she replied.

Eyeing the fairy more closely, Umbra's eyes widened with shock. _I was right, _she thought to herself. "You're not the Histoire from my world," she said loudly.

Histoire's eyes lit with interest. "There's an Histoire in your world?" asked the tome.

Umbra shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know if that's true anymore, but there was. Listen to me. You must find a way to restore them to their original states. Noire, Vert, and Blanc probably lost their goddess fragments to Neptune when they used Hard-Drive-Merge (HDM). If they remain this way, their energies will be constantly be absorbed by one another and they will eventually destroy each other!" she yelled worriedly.

The CPU and Histoire stared at Umbra skeptically. "Impossible, there is no such means that could simultaneously destroy multiple CPU so easily," Histoire argued.

Umbra shook her head. "Try to sense their fragments. Neptune should have all of them," Umbra urged.

Histoire did as she was told, but soon discovered that Umbra was right. Neptune had the fragments and at the same time, the energies of the four CPU were splurging between each other uncontrollably. If this kept up, they really would run out of energy and die. "What can we do?" Histoire asked urgently.

Umbra shook her head. "If this keeps up, they will keep absorbing from each other until they die. Someone will have to become the dominant body and permanently absorb the other three," she answered sadly.

"You're kidding me!" Noire yelled. "So we're all gonna die if we don't pick someone to absorb the rest of us?" she asked worriedly.

Vert and Blanc took a step back. "Like hell that's gonna be me," Blanc said darkly.

Vert summoned her halberd, nervously preparing her battle stance. "H-Hold on, let's just calm down Blanc," she said soothingly.

Before anyone could say anything, Blanc swung at Vert, causing Neptune and Noire to join in the fight. Soon enough, all four of them were fighting, but not like they do when they insult each other's consoles. This was a fight to kill one another.

"I refuse to be absorbed by any of you!" Vert yelled angrily.

"Yeah right! I can't let any of you icy bitches become the true goddess!" Blanc yelled.

Noire grinned as her rapier collided with Blanc's hammer. "True goddess huh? That's got a nice ring to it," she said merrily as their blades collided.

"I'm the main character so if anyone's gonna die it won't be me!" Neptune yelled as her weapon collided with the other girls' weapons.

Histoire could only watch in horror as the news of their plight plunged all four CPU into a senseless conflict aiming for the heads of the others. "Girls stop!" she begged. Her worst fear had finally been realized: the tragedy of the Gehaburn relived.

Umbra yelped as her body was covered in a darkened mist. She growled as she felt her body transforming. "D-Damn it, I'm out of time," she murmured with frustration. When the mist subsided, Alastor stood before them once again. The usually peaceful sky sounded with thunder and a melodramatic laugh filled the air.

"Hahaha! Did you really think that you could escape me so easily Histoire?" Arfoire's voice teased.

"Arfoire!" Histoire yelled with shock.

The girls stopped for a moment to see the sky twist into a nightmarish black and red. A bolt of lightning struck the tower with a thunderous _CRASH_! The four CPU knew no more.

_[Save?]_

* * *

Author's Notes:

Noire's sword is not actually a swordcannon in the real games. I just noticed that her original HDD weapon had a small cylinder in-between its two blades and decided to take advantage of that to do something creative for it for the fused form. Either way, we have finally finished the introductory arc! I can officially welcome you into the first official "chapter" of the game. Hope you enjoy it!

* * *

**Next Time: Stage 6. The War Begins Anew **


	9. Truth Fragment 1

Author's Notes: With the first official arc of the story finished, I'm going to take the time to post these inbetween the gap from now until the Planeptune Arc. These short stories are just the current truth fragments (so there will only be one more of these before the start of the next arc) that have been acquired so far during the "game." Hope you enjoy them!

* * *

******A Foreword From the Tome of Time: **This is the tale of the events surrounding Neptune's birth, but beware those who enter. The truth is at times a blessing and at others a curse...

* * *

**[Truth Fragment - 01: The Failed Purification & The Birth of Neptune]**

**Part I: The Failed Purification**

* * *

Histoire floated about Celestia alone. Since she had found Blanc and Vert a year ago, she left them to their own devices so that they may age properly before she began to train them as CPU. As she roamed the empty halls of Celestia, she passed a familiar grave- no, the only grave on Celestia. She read the inscription with a grain of salt: Here lies Guild Agent IF- A dedicated guild agent to her very last breath. She sighed. "All I can hope for now is that you can find it in your heart to forgive me for not stopping them," she whispered to the grave. Of course, she received no answer. Remembering her promise with the oracles, she whispered, "Don't worry, I won't let that happen again."

A low groaning sound filled the air. Histoire perked up with a start- suddenly breaking out into cold sweat. "Wh-What was that?"

_I think you know what I am, _whispered a low voice.

Histoire looked around, still confused and unsure of what was going on. "Who are you? How did you get up here? Only the CPU and a select few may enter these holy grounds."

A masculine laugh entered her ears. _I think you'll find that you were the one that brought me here. Or should I say, your human friend was. _

The tiny fairy raised an eyebrow before realization finally hit her. "Y-You're the-"

_Figured it out? Took you long enough, _muttered the voice. _I am Alastor- the demon who lives within this sword. I suppose that in a way, I **am **the Gehaburn._

The demon's words frightened the small oracle. "How can that be? We've purified the sword-"

_Wrong. You **thought **you did. All you did was temporarily undo the curse long enough for you to release the souls that I've stolen with the blade of this sword. I am still very much alive, and very soon, I will be capable of freeing myself from this wretched prison, _snapped Alastor.

There was silence.

"What do you want?" asked Histoire quietly.

Alastor cackled cruelly. _Come to the Chamber of the Gehaburn. Everything will be made clear if you do. _

Seeing little else she could do, Histoire immediately floated her way to the tower that housed the Gehaburn's chamber. After a few hours worth of floating, she finally made her way to the chamber. She sighed with relief- at last, her destination. "M-My goodness. What were the original goddesses thinking when they built this place?"

"They were thinking that interlopers like you and those children wouldn't be playing around up here," answered Alastor's voice, but to Histoire's surprise it wasn't a telepathic message. Standing before her was a young man with auburn hair and deep-blue eyes. The only thing that made him seem unusual were the demonic horns that protruded from his head- but what made even those odd was that rather than looking like natural horns, they appeared to be horns made from blades. Walking up to her, Alastor said, "Welcome. Then again, I guess I don't have to say that to the person who trapped me here."

Histoire merely eyed the young demon man with a confused countenance. "What _are _you?"

The blue-eyed demon laughed cruelly. "Me? I'm just a demon- nothing special. Well, I _was _an overlord, but that's all in the past now. What I want is some compensation."

Cocking her eyebrow, the small fairy replied, "Compensation?"

"That's right," replied Alastor. "You trapped me in that sword. Things were going perfectly until you opened that wretched portal and tried to take the Gehaburn from our world!" Slamming fist fists together, Alastor's fists lit aflame. "I don't know how you did it, but I _will _find a way to escape this sword whether you like it or not." Staring the blue-eyed fairy down, he said, "I've already had my loved one taken from me. I think it's only fair that you give something up in exchange."

The small fairy blanched as Alastor's form became hazy and started to break up like static. "What's happening to you?"

Alastor glowered as he stepped away from Histoire's cowering form. "I'm returning to the sword. Your purification had results, but it was incomplete and thus you have failed."

Histoire was suddenly lost. "Failed? To accomplish what exactly?"

The blue-eyed demon shook his head as he drooped his shoulders. His visage gave him the impression of a young man in mourning. "Mark my words Histoire of this world: unless you kill the girl who last wielded me- that bloody tragedy _will _repeat itself." Alastor's body finally began to break up. With barely any of his body left, he managed to say, "After all, I can already hear the cries of my true master." With that, the blue-eyed demon finally disappeared.

Histoire remained where she was- still trying to process her encounter with the blue-eyed demon. As she did so, she missed the purple glow on the Crest of Planeptune that was engraved on the alter that housed the Gehaburn...

**Part II: The Birth of Neptune **

As that purple glow shone brightly in the old castle walls of Celestia, an infant's crying roused a young man from his thoughts. "One of the babies is out!" someone yelled.

"Careful, here comes her sister!" yelled another.

The young man immediately stepped forward and gently ran his hand down the face of a young woman with long black hair done in twin braids. Her eyes were blue as the sky with beauty that would vaguely remind many of a certain late CPU. As he took a small bundle from one of the hospital nurse's, he smiled and gazed lovingly into the small child's purple eyes. "She's quite a beauty, I'll say." Motioning to black-haired woman, who still had her eyes shut, he whispered, "Would you like to hold her, Luna?"

The woman opened her eyes and tiredly tried to grab hold of the small bundle. As she did so, yet another was passed into the young man's arms. "Sirius, she looks nothing like us," joked Luna. Indeed the woman was right. This little girl had purple eyes and purple hair. Nothing like the black hair and blue eyes of her mother nor the black hair and grey eyes of her father. The other infant in his arms was no different- with hair purple like the first infant's, but eyes that were red like oxygen-rich blood.

Sirius laughed a little. "They're both a little weird," he said with a hint of amusement. Rocking the bundle in his arms, he said, "What're we gonna call 'em?"

Luna smiled down at her little bundle. "She's so beautiful, just like her mommy!" Giggling she said, "Let's call this one Neptune!"

The young man cocked an eyebrow. "As in the name of the landmass?"

"It's a fun name," argued Luna from her bed. Gently rocking the infant, she said, "And I hope that this little one's life is full of fun!"

Looking down at the infant in his arms, Sirius asked, "And what about this one?" Grinning a little, he said, "Unless you're playing favorites already! Tsk, tsk, mommy," he teased.

The blue-eyed woman laughed a little, using one hand to call Sirius to her side. As she did so, she motioned for him to give her the second bundle. Looking at the infant's crimson eyes, she finally said, "...Plutia."

"Who?" replied Sirius.

"That's her name: Plutia," said Luna. Looking down at the whining Plutia, she asked, "Do you like your name Plutia?"

Ignoring the woman's words, Plutia took her first look around the world and as she did so, Neptune did the same. For the first time, the twins gazed into each other's eyes- each unaware of the cruel fate that the two would soon have to bear.

* * *

**An Afterword From the Tome of Time: **You now know a piece of the truth. As she was born into this new world, Neptune had been named the destined master of the Blade of Tragedy- otherwise known as the Gehaburn. Whatever became of her family and the newly born Plutia?

...That, is a story for another day...

* * *

Author's Notes:

A small teaser to think about as I work to figure out what I want to do with the Fight for the Crown and Planeptune Arcs. Feel free to formulate guesses on what happened to Plutia and Neptune's parents. Keep in mind that Neptune is already 19 by the time the "game" starts and that Nepgear is her biological sister- thereby meaning that she has to have met Plutia at least once.


	10. Truth Fragment 2

**A Foreword From the Tome of Time: **This is a small tale about the Neptune from the other world Alastor spoke of. In a Gamindustri far away, the Netherworld would be making its presence known on this particular day.

* * *

**[Truth Fragment - 02: The Silver Goddess]**

Far away, in an alternate Gamindustri, a young woman with silver hair and blue eyes sauntered through a meadow of dandelions. Her countenance was brimming with cheer and her joyful humming could have easily warmed the heart of the devil himself. As she sauntered about, the young woman suddenly broke out into a skip. Her jolly change of pace hadn't even lasted for a few minutes- because not even five minutes after she began skipping, she spun around and laid herself out on the field of flowers beneath her. Looking up at the sky, she sighed tiredly. "Planeptune's so boring. I should wander off to Lastation and see how they're doing over there today."

Just as the woman was about to close her eyes and drift off into an afternoon nap, the smell of something burning caught her attention. "Hmm, that doesn't smell good." Opening one eye, she looked out toward her left to note a gigantic cloud of black smoke rising rapidly from what looked like some kind of tower not to far from where she lay. Flames erupted from the bottom of the source, but under closer inspection, the silver-haired woman noted that several mini-explosions were occurring within and feeding the flames. The woman's eyes narrowed as she irately stood back up. "Man, this just _had _to happen on my day off, didn't it?"

A dazzling light began to gather around Neptune's body. Holding out her hand, she yelled, "Processor Unit- Set!" As she said this, the light burst into several rings of binary, covering her body until not a single centimeter of it was showing. When the light and the binary faded, a slightly taller woman and more developed woman was standing where the younger one once stood. The only other real difference in her appearance was her bright blue eyes had transformed into a stunning gold. Her CPU suit was similar to the Purple Heart from our Gamindustri, but it was colored white and gold rather than black and purple. While summoning a white sword, she said to herself, "Well, time to get to work, I guess."

As Neptune was about to begin her journey toward the burning tower, the sound of a gigantic explosion roared from that general direction. The flames were growing larger- and it sure did not seem like it was an accident. Growling to herself, Neptune created a strange rune on her hand before saying, "Sky Form." Upon uttering these words, binary began to form on the CPU's back- eventually materializing white wings made from blades. Without a moment to spare, Neptune took flight- racing toward her destination.

In the blanket of the sky, Neptune soared gracefully and swiftly- though she probably would have reached her destination sooner had she not been performing barrel rolls in the sky to increase her "high score." As she flew however, strange creatures began to appear in the sky. Monsters that she had never seen before. They didn't look cybernetic- no, these were organic creatures: dragons, fenrir, and nekomatas. The CPU's eyes widened with astonishment. "What in the world is going on?"

_CRASH! _

The thunder echo of another explosion rung out through the area. Gritting her teeth, Neptune muttered, "I don't have time to find out where these things are going." Extending her palm, she waited until the strange binary created a gigantic-red axe. A savage glow appeared in Neptune's eyes before yelling, "Get outta my sight!" With a mighty swing, her axe easily cut through a few of the demons in question, but what happened next had caught her by surprise.

Normally, when a monster is killed in the unique multi-verse of Gamindustri, they burst into data and disappear; however, that was not the case today. A sickening splashing noise assaulted her ears. A disgusting red liquid littered parts of the sky and began to fall like crimson rain drops. A few splashed onto Neptune's face, causing her eyes to widen with fear. The warmth of the liquid disturbed her, but what probably bothered her more was the fact that the entrails of said killed demons began to fall from the sky.

A strange sensation began to course through Neptune's body. An unfamiliar sensation overtook her- guilt. In all of her time as a CPU, she had never experienced such guilt over slaying potential enemies of Gamindustri; but at this particular moment, the silver goddess felt as if she had made a grave mistake. It was at that moment that a gigantic stream of darkness soared across the night sky. Indeed, this stream soon gave off the appearance of a black meteor, and as it drew closer- a person, no, a woman.

Neptune could only watch with astonishment as a woman with cloaked in black flames zoomed toward her at a blinding speed- her sword at the ready. The silver goddess barely had the time to prepare her guard stance before the woman cloaked in flames jammed a powerful fist clothed in a black gauntlet against her sword. A powerful sound of metal clashing against metal rang out from the sky as the two opposing forces collided. As their eyes met, Neptune was finally able to get a good look at her opponent. A woman with long black hair and stunning silver eyes stood before her; but the dark, feline-like pupils told her all she needed to know: this woman was a demon.

Shockwaves continued to erupt from the point of collision. Neither force seemed to give an inch as Neptune attempted to parry the mysterious demon's fist; however, the black-haired demon seemed to be one step ahead of the silver goddess and would constantly readjust her position on Neptune's sword to continue applying pressure to the blade without allowing Neptune to parry. As the two forces competed, Neptune finally got an idea. Summoning a drill spear with her remaining free hand, she yelled, "Eat- this!"

The drill whirred to life as Neptune attempted to jam the drill spear into the black-haired demon's abdomen, but the demon was far too cunning. Having taken note of Neptune's surprise attack, she allowed herself to slide on Neptune's sword in order to push off of it and put distance between the two of them. As she did that, her fists began to light with a crimson light from within the black flames that cloaked her body. As she charged the energy, electrical sparks began to surge from the crimson glow. Her eyes were menacing- she was planning something.

Taking note of the attack's seemingly magical properties, Neptune immediately flew toward the black-haired demon. With the drill on her drill spear spinning at full velocity, Neptune yelled, "Oh no you don't!" As the silver goddess approached her enemy, the black-haired demon raised one of her glowing hands in the general direction of the drill spear.

Without a moment to spare, the drill spear immediately rammed itself into the crimson glow of the demon's hands; but to Neptune's surprise, she didn't pierce the demon's hand. Looking up, she realized that while her spear had managed to make impact with the mysterious glow on the demon's hands, it had failed to break through the glow into the demon's hand. At last, the demon spoke. "Your weapon is probably an magic deflection weapon. Good choice, but you forgot to account for the fact that your drill spear is rotating in a single direction. Meanwhile, my attack," the demon paused to allow Neptune to realize that the crimson energy in the demon's hands was rotating in the direction opposite to her drill, "Is moving counter to your own!" finished the demon as she increased the velocity of her spell. The crimson spiral in her hand began to spin faster and faster, causing Neptune's body to spin with her drill before being forced away from the attack and being sent flying in the opposite direction.

Neptune could do nothing- she was overwhelmed. Quickly descending, she crashed into the ground and left a crater where her body had landed. Weakly, she managed to stand up and look at the enemy before her. While she had taken damage, this wasn't nearly enough to actually fell a goddess. Just as she was about to stand back up, deep-crimson vines bound her in place. She looked on in horror as her bonds grew thorns- piercing her skin and causing her blood to seep from her body. The CPU looked up as the black-haired demon descended toward her. At last, the demon had expelled its cloak of black fire. When the demon had finally reached the ground, Neptune asked, "Wh-What are you?"

The demon said nothing for a moment, apparently trying to decide on whether it wanted to tell Neptune or not. "I only hit you because you killed a few of my subjects. We're here on some important business and will try not to cause you or your people any trouble." Looking down at the CPU with a disgusted face, the demon added, "Though I think a goddess of all people should actually try to consult with someone before trying to blast them clear out of the sky."

The CPU was skeptical, unsure of whether or not she could trust this newcomer. "What is your reason for coming here? I won't allow demons to simply waltz about Gamindustri like it's their playground."

Raising an eyebrow, the demon asked, "Are you sure you understand your predicament? All I want is to find something called a CPU Memory. If I heard right, it's a gem that can grant someone the power to become a CPU or something like that right?" Seeing Neptune's puzzled and concerned expression, the demon sighed. "I need the power of a goddess to heal my mother. My old man told me it's not good to ask the gods for help so I figured I'd get a CPU memory and use it on her-"

"You musn't!" Neptune yelled.

"Wh-Whoa!" the demon immediately leaped back at the urgency in Neptune's voice. "G-Geez, what's your problem? It's not like I'm here to massacre a village or anything."

"You musn't use that memory," warned Neptune. "A CPU Memory can only be wielded by someone deemed worthy. If you're not, the memory will turn you into a horrible creature. What's more is that the results are permanent!"

The demon seemed surprised by this bit of news, so much so that she snapped her fingers- causing the vines that bound Neptune to the ground to disappear into black mist. "I-I see. Well then, I guess I'll be going then. I guess I'll have to find some other kind of divine relic." With that, the black-haired demon turned to walk away, but before she could, Neptune grabbed onto her wrist. Looking down at the CPU, she asked, "What? Still wanna fight? Look, I didn't mean anything by coming here and since the relics in your world are useless, I'm gonna look somewhere else. Problem solved right?"

Neptune shook her head. "Wrong. You said you need the power of a goddess right? Why not let me help you? In exchange," eyeing the demon girl's palms, she added, "I want you to teach me some of your fighting skills. You're certainly no pushover from what I saw."

The demon girl had to think about it for a moment before laughing to herself hysterically. "A-A demon teaching a goddess 'moves?' I get it, you're a looney goddess right?" Shaking Neptune's hand off of her wrist, she crossed her arms and said, "I think you've forgotten that we're natural enemies. It wouldn't be good for your social status or whatever if anyone found out that an overlord like me was associated with you."

Neptune shook her head. "You don't seem like a bad person and you need my help. Even if we're enemies, it's a goddess's duty to help those in need."

The black-haired demon stared at Neptune incredulously before sighing with defeat. "Just have to be the hero eh? Your kind is creepy, but I guess I'm cool with that. I guess it'd be better to use the proper cure instead of substitute." Smiling a bit, the young overlord helped Neptune up and said, "My name's Umbra. I'm an overlord from the Netherworld called Absolana. Who're you?"

Shaking her hand, the CPU replied, "CPU Neptune- the lone CPU of this Gamindustri. It's a pleasure."

Umbra and Neptune remained that way for a moment before laughing the situation off. Indeed, from this fateful encounter, a new friendship had been born; however, it was also the beginning of a horrible tragedy.

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**An Afterword From the Tome of Time: **You've learned yet another piece of the truth. Though enemies for a moment, the young overlord Umbra had become friends with the Neptune of another Gamindustri. What exactly is the "great tragedy" I speak of? That, is a story for another day.

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Author's Notes: The last backstory chapter for now, though this concludes the truth fragments of this part of the "game." We won't be seeing these again for a while, but that aside, we can finally move on to the main story! Please look forward to it! ^_^

P.S. Just as a side note, for this Neptune's design- think the thrown out design of the older-looking Neptune in the HDN and Mk2 artbooks but with silvery-white hair and blue eyes. CPU form is Purple Heart for the most part aside from the costume change.

**Next Time - Stage 6. Imprisoned**


	11. Stage 6: Imprisoned

**Author's Notes: **Well hello again everyone! I'm back for the next arc and I'd just like to thank everyone for the reviews. They're very encouraging. Hope you enjoy the latest chapter!

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**Stage 6. Imprisoned **

[_Time Skip: Five Days After the Incident in the Tower_]

The sound of a rusty door slowly creaking open caught a tired Nepgear's expression, followed by the sounded of someone hitting the stone flooring. "Oomph!" cried Uni as she landed on her side. The black-haired CPU candidate angrily stood up and stared at an unusually distant Blanc. Well, as distant as the usually-stoic CPU could get anyway. "Wh-What's the big idea Blanc? You, my sister, Neptune, and Vert have been fighting like this for days! Now you're locking Nepgear and me up? Why?" Uni's anger only increased when she realized that Blanc was trying to ignore her. The CPU candidate winced when she realized that her arm was slightly damaged from the fall, but she managed to grit her teeth and cling to the jail-like door before her. "Tell me why dammit!" she demanded.

Blanc stared at her with calm, lifeless eyes. "I did this as a favor to your friggin' sister. If you've got a problem with it, tell it to her dammit!" yelled Lowee's CPU. Without warning, Blanc raised her hammer and angrily held it over the caged door. That was when Uni noticed something: Blanc's hands were shaking. "Tch, this shit isn't even worth it," muttered the CPU. Dispelling her hammer, Lowee's CPU began to turn away from the two CPU candidates.

"W-Wait!" called Nepgear.

"Hmm?" Blanc turned around slightly, staring into Nepgear's fearful, purple eyes- eyes that reminded Blanc of joyful memories that she'd rather forget at the moment. "What is it?"she asked with a slight snarl.

Nepgear hesitated for a moment, looking around just to be sure she wasn't seeing things. At last, she asked, "Where are Rom and Ram?" Since Nepgear and Uni had arrived, Rom and Ram had not appeared. Their lack of presence was beginning to worry Planeptune's CPU candidate.

Planeptue's CPU candidate had obviously struck a harsh nerve. All in the room went dead silent as Blanc's shoulders stiffened considerably. Slowly, just barely turning a centimeter with each small footstep, Blanc was turning to face her fellow CPUs' younger sisters. The sheer rage in her eyes was immeasurable- burning so brightly, so dangerously that Nepgear and Uni were compelled to step back a few paces. Their instincts were well on the money when Blanc's fist slammed itself against the door. The echo of her fist against the door's steel echoed throughout hallway, but somehow for all of Blanc's strength, the door did not break. Uni and Nepgear dared not utter a word as Blanc leveled her head to glare at them eye-to-eye. "Don't stick your nose where it doesn't belong. This should be over... soon." The way Blanc said it gave off signs of incredible fatigue. As she turned away, Lowee's CPU said, "Oh, and one more thing: be prepared to take post as official CPUs. If I, Vert, Neptune, or Noire come back; assume that the other three current CPU are dead... That is all." With that she walked away.

Blanc's footsteps echoed throughout the hallway. Step by step, Blanc quietly walked away from the small prison. The echo of each step cruelly assaulted the two CPU candidates' ears as they attempted to process what the older CPU had just told them. Had they been listening closer however, they might have heard the one abnormal sound among the echoes. The sound of a lost CPU whispering, "I'm sorry... I'm so sorry."

Uni sank into the fetal position, her arms shaking with fear. She sat in complete bewilderment. What Blanc had just told them was utterly ridiculous! "N-No way. What is she talking about? That's ridiculous!" yelled Uni. "R-Right, Nepgear?"

Nepgear didn't answer her- opting to stare at the ground instead.

"Nepgear?"

No answer. This time, Nepgear decided to curl herself up into a ball in the leftmost corner of the small dungeon cell.

"Nepgear?"

Again, no answer. All Uni could hear was Nepgear quietly muttering something unintelligible.

Sighing with frustration, Uni strutted over to her lilac-haired friend and sat herself down beside her. "Hey, am I talking to my butt?"

"No, this can't be happening. Not again. Not again," muttered Nepgear quietly. Her entire body shook with tears forming in her eyes. Nepgear's composure gave off the very image of someone who had completely fallen into despair.

Uni cocked an eyebrow and tilted her head. It was almost as if Nepgear were in a trance- her eyes blank and nigh-lifeless. The light in her eyes no longer present, Nepgear continued to mutter the same sentence over and over again. "Nepgear? C'mon, are you okay?" All Uni got in response was the same sentence, but with each passing time that her lilac-haired friend said it, it became more and more filled with anguish. Tears were now falling from Nepgear's eyes for reasons unknown to Uni. Unsure of what else to do, the black-haired CPU candidate embraced her sobbing friend. "This isn't the time to be crying," she whispered. "Come on. We have to find out what's going on here." Growing more frustrated with Nepgear's behavior, Uni yelled, "If we don't, our sisters might wind up dead!" While not meaning to, Uni came herself had become emotional and wound up sobbing in the middle of her sentence. She nearly froze when Nepgear stood up from her grasp.

The Lastation CPU candidate watched as Nepgear stared into space for a moment, her balance slightly off as she swayed from side to side. Finally stiffening, another air of deathly silence flooded the dungeon cell. No amount of time could have possibly prepared Uni for what would happen next however. "NO!" Nepgear screamed as she dashed toward the locked door, yanking on it vigorously while trying to force it open. While she should have realized her efforts were in vain, the lilac-haired candidate refused to give in. While constantly screaming in protest, a desperate Nepgear pounded at the door- falling to her knees as she cried out in despair. Uni could only look on as she watched what Nepgear weakly punch door. "I'll kill you," she whispered in a barely audible voice.

Again the black-haired candidate was stunned, but more-so because Nepgear had been the one to utter such violent words. "Wh-What?"

"I'll kill you," whispered Nepgear menacingly.

Sensing that something was definitely wrong, Uni stood up and tried to make her way to Nepgear's side. "Nepgear? I know you're upset. I am too, but-"

"I killed you once and I can do it again!" yelled Nepgear psychotically.

The demented twist to her voice caused Uni to immediately take a few steps back, her back to the wall as her body began to quake with fear. Suddenly, she remembered something that Alastor had said to her: _"You remember nothing little girl, but she will be the death of your precious big sister if you allow her to live!" _Uni shook as she tried to quietly digest what Nepgear had just screamed. _D-Did she really mean that? _thought Uni, _Has Nepgear killed someone before? _She clutched her head with her right hand as she thought, _What if Alastor was right? Did Nepgear... Really kill my big sister once before? _Looking at Nepgear, another thought popped into her mind. _Or what if that was directed at me? _As a terrifying chill coursed through the black-haired candidate's spine, she had to take a moment to shake herself free of the fear that threatened to drive her mad. _No, that's ridiculous, _thought Uni, _Nepgear would never- _

The sound of clapping ripped Uni from her thoughts. She immediately turned around to find Alastor sitting comfortably at the poorly-made wooden table situated near the viewing area of the cell. There were two chairs over there- just right for Nepgear and Uni. Staring at the black-haired candidate with unsympathetic eyes, the demon asked, "So? Figured it all out did we? Someone summoned me here, didn't they?" Alastor looked over at Nepgear and shot her a look of interest. "What's with my old master? She looks a bit... downtrodden."

Uni growled at the demon before crossing her arms. "Why the hell would CPUs summon a demon? First of all, I don't know how you got in here, but I'm definitely gonna beat you up! Secondly, when did Nepgear become your 'old master?' Last I checked, you hated her guts and wanted her dead!" The candidate's anger seemed to reach a boiling point when she realized that Alastor seemed to be giving more focus to eyeing her up rather than actually paying attention to what she was saying. "H-Hey, listen to me dammit!" she yelled.

Alastor waved a dismissive hand. "Relax would ya? Am I not allowed to admire a pretty girl?" flirted the demon.

The black-haired CPU candidate nearly lurched with disgust. "Are you bipolar or something?" While it disturbed her to hear this compliment from a demon of all things, it bothered her even more that this demon had gone from dangerously hostile to openly flirty toward her. That was when Uni noticed something: Alastor's eyes were now blue and his hair was now auburn in color. Save for the blade-like horns, the demon's appearance had changed. Placing a hand on her face, she muttered, "Oh great. He thinks he's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde."

The demon snickered at the CPU candidate's observation. "Well, you've almost got it. You just saw me on a bad day the other time." Summoning the Gehaburn, Alastor added, "Though I have to say that it must be tiring for you to be the strong one all the time." The demon took a moment to stare at the broken Nepgear, who was still trying to punch her way through the door. "You've got it rough kid. My condolences."

Not falling for Alastor's poor attempts at making small talk, Uni summoned her gun and pointed it at the demon's head. "I don't trust you. You tried to kill us, but now you expect me to fall for your cheap attempt at flirting? Dream on buddy!" Despite her tough words, Uni was keeping a close eye on her target. Uni had managed to hit Alastor while fighting him in the tower; however, the only problem was that he seemed completely unharmed by her attack. Eyeing the Gehaburn, the CPU candidate added, "Moreover, you summoned your weapon."

"Hmm, I guess that was a bit of a bad idea. My mistake." Placing the sword on the table, Alastor leaned on his chair and asked, "So if neither you nor lilac-head over there didn't summon me, who did?" Hearing Nepgear dementedly chant that she was going to kill someone, Alastor sighed a bit. "Oh, so that's it." Pointing at Nepgear, the demon said, "Look, do something about her. I can slip my consciousness into this side of me when I'm away from the current CPUs, but if she gets to the point where her malice activates the blade, well; let's just say you'll be the first to die in a room this small."

Uni blanched a little and looked at Nepgear and then back at the sword. Not wanting to believe in Alastor's words, she yelled, "You're lying! You just wanna scare me so that I do what you say!" Seeing the annoyed look on the demon's face, the candidate said, "That's it, isn't it? Look, why don't you get up and leave? If you do that, I won't pump any holes into you." As she made her threat, Uni made care to keep her aim leveled perfectly at Alastor's heart.

Alastor sighed lazily. "Well, I warned ya," he said tiredly. Walking over to Uni, he pointed at Nepgear and playfully whispered, "Better do something about her. Next time she summons me, I may just take her body for a joy ride."

With her mind a tad in the gutter, Uni flushed brightly and screamed, "Absolutely not! I won't allow it! Get out! Leave! If you dare come back, I'll freakin' annihilate you! You got that punk?"

Without warning, Alastor and his sword disappeared with a gust of wind. Uni quickly looked around the stone cell, only to find that Alastor was definitely gone. All that remained was the echo of his laugh. _"Fine, fine. I'll leave it for now. Just be careful Uni- I wasn't kidding about her killing you if I come back."_

The black-haired candidate shivered at how evil Alastor's playful voice could sound while returning her focus to a kneeling Nepgear. Walking up to her and patting her shoulder, Uni asked, "How in the world did you ignore all of that? He has to be the creepiest man in all of Gamindustri." Nepgear didn't answer, only continuing to mutter that she was going to kill someone. At last, Uni's patience had finally reached its breaking point. Turning the lilac haired girl around and grabbing the collar of her dress, she yelled, "How long are you gonna sit there like that huh? Pull yourself together dammit!"

The thunderous sound of a hard slap echoed throughout the chamber walls. At last, Nepgear stopped her mumbling. In fact, said lilac-haired guardian suddenly looked around with a start. "Huh? What, Uni? What was I doing?" she asked. Removing herself from Uni's grasp, Nepgear summoned her sword. "We have to get out of here," said the lilac-haired candidate.

Uni stood there completely bewildered. "What the hell? You mean you don't remember anything?" she asked loudly.

Shaking her head, Nepgear replied, "No. Did I do something weird?"

The CPU candidate of Lastation took a moment to consider telling Nepgear the truth. In the end, she shook her head with a smile and answered, "Nah, not really. You kinda wimped out on me and started moping in front of the door. That's all." Walking over to the door, she dispelled her gun looked from right to left. "It looks like we've been brought to the very bottom of the dungeon floor. Think you can spring us? I'm not too sure my gun can break this door down without the bullets being sent back at us."

Nepgear nodded. "Just leave it to me," said the lilac-haired candidate. Brandishing her sword, Nepgear focused her energy into the blade. At first the N-symbol near the tip of the blade began to glow a bright blue color, followed by the rest of the blade. While carefully crouching into a proper swinging position, Nepgear took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "Here goes," yelled Nepgear as she swung her blade.

[_Astral Saber_]!

With a loud crash, the door easily fell to the might of Nepgear's sword beam. The only problem now was that the sword beam had totally toasted the exterior of the wall ahead of them. "Oh no! I ruined the wall! Histoire's not going to like this," lamented Nepgear.

Uni rolled her eyes. "You can worry about that crap later, let's get a move on already!" Grabbing Nepgear by the wrist, Uni immediately ran out of the dungeon cell and took a left in the thin hallway. There was only a choice of left and right for her, but remembering Blanc's path from the top, Uni reasoned that retracing her steps was the best approach. After passing three similar doors, Uni and Nepgear arrived at the end of the hallway where a door was situated. The two candidates looked at each other and smiled. "Ready to pull a jailbreak?" asked Uni excitedly.

"Totally," cheered a merry Nepgear.

The two were just about to open the door when familiar voices entered their ears.

"Uwaaa! Rom, make help me!"

"I-I'm trying, sis. I can't. You summoned too many creatures!"

"Tch, damn it all! Think I could summon monsters to help us fight them?"

"Um, I don't think that's a good id-"

[_Magical Mayhem_]!

More monsters appeared and they seemed angrier than ever. Rom and Ram screamed even louder, running harder than before in an attempt to escape the band of monsters that were attempting to attack them. At last Uni and Nepgear opened the door, ascended a small set of stairs and found themselves on the next floor. The only problem was that Rom and Ram were waiting for them up there with unwanted guests: monsters and tons of them. Uni blanched as she summoned her gun. "What the hell? Rom, Ram, where did all of these monsters come fro-"

Too scared to hear out Uni's question, Rom waved her wand in an attempt to do something about the group's enemies. "Please work," she whispered.

[_Magical Tempest_]!

A sudden wind picked up, knocking the monsters off balance, but knocking the girls over completely in the process. All of the girls quickly began to scream as Rom attempted to undo her spell. Turning around to see an embarrassed Nepgear, an annoyed Ram, and an unusually angry Uni; Rom quickly gave them an apologetic bow. "I-I'm sorry everyone! I put too much power into the spell," she said sheepishly.

While Uni did want to scold Rom for her mishap, she soon noticed the monsters were getting up. "Hmph, looks like you're getting off easy today," muttered the black-haired candidate.

Rom huffed and crossed her arms. "Don't pick on Rom, Uni. It's totally not cool to pick on someone who's not even half your size!"

"U-Um, guys, we probably shouldn't fight right now," urged Nepgear while pointing earnestly at the foes before them. As if to emphasize her point, one of the larger monsters roared at them loudly, nearly flipping their skirts as it did so.

Sighing grouchily, Uni muttered, "Whatever." Pointing her gun at the gigantic monster, Uni yelled, "So whaddya say we kick some ass?"

"Yeah!" the other three cheered.

_[Rom joined the party]!_

_[Ram joined the party]!_

[Save]?

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**Author's Notes:** And so the little sisters finally get their time in the spotlight! Sorry to any Nepgear fans who may have been disturbed by her unusual outburst. A clarification on Alastor's appearance: think Adell but with blue eyes, reddish-brown hair, and blade-like demon horns basically. On the topic of that, don't worry UnixNepgear fans, he's not stealing anyone, I hope. O_o Guess you'll have to read on to find out, won't you? Hahaha, I'm sorry. That was a bad joke. On any note, I hope to see you next chapter! Hope you enjoyed this one. Ciao~

_Red-Drive_

**Next Time - Stage 7. Lost in the Castle**


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